Just Call Me Lucifer
by TheBaeTide
Summary: Sequel to Sympathy of the Devil. The sheriff and the lawyer are trying to rebuild their life together, and they are determined to make it work this time, but it won't be easy as old habits die hard. Rick's still obsessed. Michonne's still flawless. AU. No walkers.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1:**

 _'Show him the… the thang'_

... _Past_...

"Rick?... Can you hear me? Rick the movie finished..."

Rick sat staring ahead in the dimly lit movie theatre. His focus wasn't on anything, he was just in a state of shock at hearing his new fiancée was pregnant.

"Rick?"

He blinked and shook his head as he tried to concentrate on her, he cleared his increasingly dry throat, "You're pregnant?"

"I am…" She said quietly, her eyes locked on him.

He winced at her, "How?... I mean you said-"

"I was Rick, but I didn't take them when I was sick…"

His eyes snapped shut as he remembered when she had food poisoning a while back. It didn't even occur to him that it would interfere with her birth control.

"...How are you feeling?"

He didn't want to answer that question for the moment. Truth was he didn't know how to feel, he had put all thoughts of having more children to the back of his head after they divorced.

"I don't know how to answer that right now" He hoped he didn't sound harsh as he didn't want to upset her.

"Okay", She nodded and looked around aimlessly for only a few seconds before standing, "Come on, let's go home"

He sighed as he stood and followed her to the exit. He felt like his head was swimming as he tried to grasp what was happening and what her pregnancy meant. He tried to gauge how she felt but he couldn't quite tell; she seemed fine but he wasn't sure if he picked up her tone correctly. He dragged his hand over his face and groaned as they approached his truck.

She held out her hands for the car keys and he gladly obliged. He was in no state of mind to drive. He knew there was a chance that he'd just keep driving until things made sense.

The drive home was uncomfortably silent. He was staring out the windshield with his wide eyes but he wasn't looking at a thing. She seemed to do the same. They both sat their consumed in their thoughts until they got home.

"How was the movie?" Carl asked as he shoved a slice of pizza in his mouth.

Rick looked at the large pizza box that sat beside him on the couch and wondered how such a slim boy could eat so much, "Uh… great… do you want to show him the… your ring? Show him the… the thang"

Michonne looked down at her hand and her eyes opened slightly, "Oh yeah… look, we're getting married… again"

Carl's eyes shot open as he looked at his mother's hand, "No way! Really?"

They both nodded as if they were agreeing on a whine choice instead of a legal commitment.

Carl's head jerked back as he looked at them, "Okay… don't both speak at once"

Rick gave a poor attempt at a chuckle and cleared his throat, while Michonne lips curled into a smile but her eyes looked almost panicked.

"I'm gonna… go…" Rick started as he pointed to the stairs.

"Yeah yeah sure, go ahead" She nodded.

He stood there for a moment before turning to the stairs and slowly walking up them. He sighed when he reached the top and looked towards the guestroom, picturing it as a nursery. He didn't know how to describe how he felt when he did that, but he walked over to the door and shut it, before going to their bedroom.

Once he was in the room panic started to rise in his chest as he slowly paced. He ran his hands through his hair and groaned as his mind raced. He pulled popped the buttons off his shirt and kicked off his shoes. His clothes were restricting him, almost suffocating him and he ripped them off before pulling on a pair of sweatpants.

It didn't help. He reached to his stomach as if he was going to take off his T-shirt but he wasn't wearing one. He groaned again before leaving their room entirely. He went over to Judith's room and snuck in, quietly closing the door behind him.

His eyes scanned over her white and pink room, until they landed on her little body beneath her covers. He lightly stepped over to her bed and gently sat on the edge, watching her sleep. He loved that she still slept in the foetal position, with her hands under her chin. He ran his hand over her hair and brushed his fingers over her cheek. Memories of her as baby came flooding back to him. He'd give anything to do it all again with her and Carl. Especially Carl as he was getting much older and he struggled to remember him so small.

His thoughts travelled to the new baby. It saddened him that he didn't initially feel how he felt when he was told about Carl and Judith. He would hate to admit it but he it was almost like a wave of dread submerged him. He shook his head and looked back down at Judith, then leaned down and kissed her on the forehead before sneaking back out her room.

He stood on the landing listening to his home. Carl was still downstairs, probably still eating, but he was unsure where Michonne was. He focused, trying to hear where she could be, then heard a slight cough in the bedroom. He looked towards the door for a few moments, then chose to go downstairs.

"I feel sick" Carl complained, holding his stomach.

Rick looked at the now empty box of pizza and sighed, "Yeah, that will do it"

"I'm going to go rethink my life choices" Carl said as he stood and took the empty box out the room.

Rick took his now vacant seat on the couch and huffed. He frowned when he saw what Carl was watching and turned it off.

"You going to bed dad?" Carl asked as he stood at the living room door.

Rick furrowed his brow and shook his head, "Nah not yet...Carl?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't eat that much pizza again unless you or your sister's life depends on it"

Carl groaned, "Night dad"

"Night son"

…

Rick awoke the next morning to a weight on his stomach. He tried to remember if he had drank the previous night as he slowly opened his eyes, only to see it was Judith sat watching TV on top of him. She looked down at him and smiled.

"You wouldn't move daddy" She quickly explained.

He gave a lazy chuckle as he lifted her on to his lap so he could sit up properly, "Sorry sweetie, daddy was tired"

She seemed to ignore him as the TV hypnotised her into submission. Rick shook his head and sat back, allowing her to continue her show. He didn't remember falling asleep on the couch but he imagined Michonne wouldn't be happy about it, and he didn't want to upset her any more than he knew he probably did.

He was still sat with Judith when he heard footsteps coming down the stairs. He looked towards the steps and saw Michonne appear in her Pyjamas. She yawned as she walked towards the kitchen. Rick thought for a moment, before shifting a comatose Judith off his lap and on the chair. He sighed as he walked towards the kitchen, unsure of what he was actually going to say.

Michonne was stood leaning on the counter when he walked in. She gave him a quick smile as she took a sip of her bottle of water.

"Hey…" Was all he could say as he walked over and joined her against the counter.

"Hi" She kept her gaze low as she turned her head a fraction towards him.

"Sorry about last night" He crossed his arms over his chest, "I'm still…"

"I know"

"It's a lot to…"

"It's is"

He looked down at her feet, "How are you feeling?"

She sighed and crossed her arms too, "I really don't know, it's kind of… I mean I'm not upset or anything, just still trying to get my head around it"

He nodded. He understood.

"Do you think this is a good idea?"

He looked up at her and he could instantly see she was worried. He bit the corner of his mouth for a moment, "I think we're both nervous right now, but I think it is, we'll get there"

She gave a small nod in agreement, "We will"

He rested his hand on her lower back and guided her to him, and she rested her head on his shoulder. He was feeling slightly better about everything, but still very anxious about it all.

"Rick?"

"Yeah?"

"The next time you fall asleep on the couch it won't be by choice"

He looked up at the ceiling and groaned, "Yes mam"

... _Present_...

"We need to start looking at venues" Michonne suggested as Rick drove her to work.

He nodded in agreement, "We do. I actually want to take a look at the place that's holding the pageant. Looked pretty good in the photos"

"Oh really? Alright"

"If we like it we can ask if they have any dates available this fall"

"This fall?"

He glanced over at her, knowing well enough that the fact that she repeated it told him she didn't like the idea, "What's wrong with that?"

She gave a little shrug and looked out the window, "Nothing"

He bit his lips together in an attempt to watch his words, "You have another time in mind?"

She sighed, "No it's fine. You've decided already"

His brow furrowed as he stared out the windshield, "No, we need to decide together so tell me when you're thinking"

She turned in her seat to face him, "Spring?"

"Spring?" He hated the idea but nodded slowly, "Why spring?"

"Because I feel like we have a lot going on this year with… you know and redecorating the house-"

"Yeah but you'll be on leave soon, the house will only take a few weeks to finish, we can do it"

She stared at the side of his face, "You mean I can do it"

He groaned, "No we can-"

"Okay you know what, fine. This fall"

He didn't like the sound of that, "We can do it. I know we can"

"Oh, we will" She smirked.

He glanced over at her, "What are you thinking about?"

"I'm thinking about how much I love you…" She smiled at him in a way she did when she was trying to distract him.

He scowled at the windshield, "Yeah yeah"

"I am" She insisted in a sultry tone as she rested her hand on his shoulder, stroking his neck with her fingers gently.

"Stop all that" He warned as her plan began to work.

"Why?" She teased.

"You always do this" He reluctantly shook her off, "Whenever you wanna take my mind of somethan'-"

"It always works though" She ran her fingers through his hair.

He bit his lip as he pulled into her office parking lot, "I can't wait till you're at home all day"

She grinned, "And why's that?"

"I am gonna have some fun with you"

"Oh really?"

"You better believe it" He smiled as he parked up and leaned over to her, "I'll be coming home on my lunch break…"

She giggled as she wrapped his arms around his shoulders, "Yeah?"

"Give you somethan' to think about till I get home..." He whispered as he kissed along her jaw and ran his hand up and down her thigh.

"Oh Rick" She moaned as he kissed down to her neck, "We can use the whip cream again-"

He stopped, pulling back to look at her, his face blank, "No"

She frowned at him, "Why not?"

"Because you eat it. And not in a sexy way either, you just eat it"

She tilted her head at him, "I like whip cream a lot right now"

"Oh I know, I learnt that the last time we had it in the bedroom"

She pouted as she leaned forward and kissed him softly, her tongue gently licking his bottom lip, causing him to grip her thigh.

"Oh real nice! Making out in a parking lot in the middle of the day!"

Rick groaned at the sound of Andrea's voice. He pulled away and saw her standing on the passenger side of the vehicle, hands on her hips and eyebrows raised.

"Go away" He called out to her.

She tilted her head, "I work here! You're the one that needs to go Sheriff!"

He looked back at Michonne and pleaded, "Let me arrest her please? Just let me put her in a cell until the day comes when I can actually stand her"

"No because then she'd die in there" She huffed as she unravelled herself from him.

"Fine" He sighed as he sat back in his seat, his pants feeling less tight, "Oh, I gotta go pick up my tux later"

She opened the door, then looked at him, "Your tux? I thought we agreed that you'd wear that black on black suit I got you?"

He winced, "Oh yeah… but I already got the-"

"Okay, you know what, it's fine" She sighed as she got out the car.

He dragged a hand down his face, "I just got it taken in-"

"It's fine!" She shouted as she slammed the passenger door.

He growled into the empty car while he watched her march away.

After doing a lap around town to cool down, he arrived at work and tried to remain calm, as he was doing his best to work on his temper. While he felt better being able to get things off his chest freely, he had notice both his children were mimicking his trait, so he was hoping to lead by example of how to stay level headed.

"How's Chonne doing?"

Rick sighed as he put his fresh mug of coffee down, "She's… she's driving me all up and down the wall"

Daryl smirked and shook his head.

"One minute, I can see she's feeling a little fragile, work, the kids and… it's all just taking its toll, so I try my best to look after her, you know?"

Daryl nodded in agreement.

Rick leaned forward and squinted at his friend, "Then the next minute, she's throwing dinner out in the back yard because I said I'm not hungry yet"

His friend chuckled at his dilemma.

"She almost broke my car window just now! Slamming the door because I told her I wanna wear my tux and not the suit she got me to the ball" Rick raked his fingers through his hair.

Daryl groaned, "I just let Sasha decide. She lays it out and I put it on. No argument"

"I'll see if that works" Rick huffed dryly.

"Hey sheriff's! Brought those police reports you wanted" The new deputy walked in with several paper folders in her arms and rested them on the table.

Rick couldn't even be bothered to smile, "Thank you, Rosita"

"No problem" She called as she left the room as quickly as she came in.

Rick spent the day buried in paperwork, and he preferred it as there wasn't much he could get angry at. He was always pleased when he could get through the day not yelling at or threatening someone, and wanted to continue to live a stress free life.

"Daddy! What's that?"

Judith pointed at the black dust bag he carried as he walked in to his home.

"It's daddy's tuxedo for his work party, sweetie" He leaned down and kissed her on the head.

Judith looked at the bag for a few more moments, before looking up to him, "Mama said she was gonna burn a tuxedo. Is that what it's for?"

Rick stared down at his daughter, pursing his lips in annoyance before gathering himself, "Oh mama was just joking, Judy. You know how funny she is"

Judith nodded as she skipped beside him to the kitchen.

Michonne was leaning against the counter, looking at something on her phone, "Go wash up for dinner, honey. And tell your brother to come down please"

"Okie doke" Judith skipped away again.

Rick went over and planted himself in front of her, his hands on either side of the counter, "You're gonna burn my tux?"

Her eyes darted up at him, then towards the kitchen entrance. She sighed, "Judith"

"Well?"

"Yes I am" She put her phone down and stood up straight, with only an inch space between them.

"You said it's fine-"

"I lied."

He dropped his head onto her shoulder, rubbing his nose against her collarbone, "I'm wearing my tux but you can pick my formal clothes from now on, okay? I don't care what I wear as long as we leave the house on time"

She seemed to be considering it, "Alright, deal"

"Thank you" He placed little kisses on her neck, causing her to wrap her arms around his shoulders, "One of these days we need to get these kids out the house"

"What for?" He could hear the amusement in her tone.

"So we can do whatever we want, wherever we want"

"Oh really?" Her voice was low and sensual, tickling his ear.

He ran brushed his lips along her jaw as he whispered, "Yep. And I want to-"

"We're coming into the kitchen!"

Rick tensed as he stepped away from Michonne, his body having to quickly calm for the second time that day, "Very funny!"

Carl appeared with Judith on his back, his eyes already darting between the two, "Good. There's no hope left for me but Judith may not need therapy if I protect her"

"I wouldn't be making jokes if I was you" Michonne warned, "Not after I heard you on the phone at one in the morning last night"

Carl's face fell.

Rick frowned as he turned to his son, "Why were you on even on your phone at that time? You talking to Lauren?"

Carl groaned as he put Judith down.

Rick's faced pinched, "You see her all day at school, then most days after school, so what on earth do you even have left to talk about at one in the morning?"

Michonne raised her eyebrows at Rick as walked over to the oven.

Rick frowned again at Carl, "That conversation better have been about somethan' you could discuss in front of me and your mother?"

"Oh my god" Carl groaned as he sat on a bar stool after helping Judith on hers.

"You get caught on that phone again and you won't have any choice but to only talk to her at school"

Carl dropped his head on the table, "Fine!"

Rick looked back at Michonne as he shook his head, "Damn teenagers".


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2:**

 _'Oh I will. You know will'_

" _Ms Parker, your boyfriend_ -"

"Fiancée"

" _Fiancée… told us not to accept any calls from you in relation to altering your daughter's dress_ "

Michonne dragged her hand down her face.

"I just want a few changes made and that's it-"

" _He said you'd say that_ "

"The cut of the dress-"

" _Ms Parker, we don't want to have to block this number too_ -"

"Fine!"

She hung up the phone and huffed, before holding it out to Andrea.

"They still won't let you make alterations?"

"Nope. Rick's basically stopped me changing any of the outfits he's picked for her. I don't mind her little talent outfit, it's just the first dress she wears and the crowning dresses need to be tweaked"

Andrea sighed as she sat back in the chair opposite her desk, "Sorry Hun"

"It's alright. I'll figure something out"

"So we have a busy next few months ahead of us. Policeman's ball. Your birthday. Milly's birthday. Judith's pageant. Redecorating. Baby. Wedding-"

"Shit! When is Milly's birthday?" Michonne's eyes widened.

"Next month"

"Oh good. We have time to get her something"

"Dreading seeing that mother of hers though" Andrea scowled as she gazed around the office.

"You're not the only one"

"Uh, you've been fortunate enough to not see her for months"

"That is very true" Michonne slowly stood from her chair and walked around her desk to her filing cabinet.

"I can't wait to meet my new niece or nephew. I need to get some cute little outfits" Andrea cooed as she watched her.

"You and me both"

"How's Rick with everything?"

She sighed, "He's getting better. I mean if I'm gonna talk about the baby then I have to kind of ease him into it, otherwise he'll get this panicked look in his eyes like I'm trying to chew his arm off"

"Still?"

"I don't even say the word baby. It's like he knows that I'm pregnant, he'll talk about my mood swings and everything but… he only touches my stomach when I'm sleeping… well when he thinks I'm sleeping…"

"Really?" Andrea looked at her with concern.

"Yeah… I guess that's when he feels comfortable… but we have another scan this week so… hopefully he'll look at the screen this time…"

"He's probably just worried about how things will go this time around"

She nodded as she looked at the files in front of her, "I know, and I get it but I just feel a bit… lost without him"

"Maybe you should go shopping for baby stuff together, go pick out a crib and things, remind him that he's important in this too"

She thought about it, and didn't disagree with the idea, "I'll try… hopefully it'll work"

"Trust me. It will help... or he'll run out screaming, either way I'll be there with a net to catch him"

Michonne chuckled, "Oh yeah, he'd love that"

"Hey! I'm here to help"

….

"Is it moving?"

"No sweetie, the baby's still too small for you to feel it"

Judith's was silent as she rested her ear on her mother's stomach as they sat in the living room.

"I can't hear anything" Judith sat up from her mother's lap and frowned at her.

"Still too small for that too. But don't worry, you will soon"

"How do you see it?"

"The nurse puts a special wand on my tummy and then you see it on the TV screen" Michonne explained as she smoothed her daughter's hair back.

Judith tilted her head at her, "Who will it look like?"

Michonne gave a little shrug, "We don't know yet honey… we have to wait to see"

She bounced on the chair, "I can't wait"

The front door opened and Rick trudged through the door with a sigh, and Judith flew to greet him.

"Daddy!"

"Hey sweetie" He cupped her face as he leaned down and kissed her forehead.

"I can't hear the baby"

Rick's eyebrows shot up as he began to nod slowly, peeling off his windbreaker, "Oh… Yeah you won't be able to hear anythan' Judy"

"And I can't feel it. Mama said it's too small"

Michonne could tell Rick was struggling with answering Judith. His eyes were focused purely on the little girl and nothing else.

"Yeah won't be able to feel… anythan' either… how was school? What did you do today?"

"I made a crown!" Judith exclaimed excitedly.

"Oh really? Where is it?"

"I ripped it, so I can I have a real one?"

He chuckled as he picked her up, "You are your mother's child"

"She knows what she wants" Michonne smiled as he walked in the living room.

His eyes darted down to her stomach for only a second before they stayed up on her face, "How are you?"

"Good. Tired"

He sat down and let Judith sit on his lap as he looked to Michonne, "Go to bed then"

"Not yet…" She huffed as she took his hand in hers, "I want us to start on that room soon…"

He stared at her for a moment, his hand stiff in hers.

"After we find out… whether it's another Carl or another Judy" She hoped her strange arrangement of words would make sense to him.

He blinked and began to nod, "Yeah, alright…"

"Good" She brought his hand up to her lips and kissed his knuckle.

He looked towards the TV, then furrowed his brow as he turned back to her, "You tried to have Judy's dress-"

"I don't appreciate you barring me from helping" She hurriedly countered.

"That's not the point though is it? You just wanna change it-"

" _Tweak_. Tweak it"

"No. It's fine, she's going to look adorable in it and that's it"

She narrowed her eyes at him, ready to dismiss his opinion.

"Hey before you even do all that, I'll be home late tomorrow so-"

"How late?" She raised an eyebrow at him.

He shrugged, "I don't know what time but later than usual"

She tilted her head at him, "Is Rosemary going to be there?"

He snapped his eyes shut and shook his head, "Okay her name is _Rosita_ , and she works with us, so yes she will be there-"

"Your little girlfriend, you mean-"

"Don't talk like that around my daughter" He warned as he frowned at her.

"Oh please! She's in a trance, her only focus right now is the TV" Michonne raised her hand towards Judith, who was very much only interested in the television.

"It doesn't matter. You need to stop calling any woman-"

"No, not any woman. Women you hide from me-"

"I didn't hide anyone!" He almost hissed, "Why would I tell you that she's working with us? I didn't tell you Eric was working with us, did I?"

"Oh how convenient-"

"You're crazy, you know that right?" He tilted his head at her as he squinted.

"Oh yeah I forgot, I'm crazy, I eat souls, I'm the devil-" She complained as she slowly eased up from the couch.

"Yes, you are. You are all those things" He agreed dryly.

"Yeah yeah, just call me Lucifer then" She scowled at him, stepping past he and Judith.

"Oh I will. You know I will"

"You better not let me find-"

"Alright!"

….

"Good morning, Mr Grimes and Mrs Parker, how are you two doing today?"

Rick looked over at Michonne, who was in no mood at all to make it to her doctor's appointment, as she didn't have a good night rest, and she had it written all over her face.

He sighed and looked from Michonne to the Nurse, "She's a little grumpy today"

"I am" Michonne gave a small nod.

The nurse also sighed, and looked strained as she looked through her medical notes, "Okay… well you are officially at the five month mark so congratulations, I'd like to talk about your diet…"

Michonne made a sound that could have been mistaken for a growl.

"Easy" Rick warned in a low voice as he rested his hand on her knee.

"...Never mind. I'll be sure to give you a few pamphlets about healthy eating before you go. So, anything you want to talk to me about before we take a look at your baby?"

Neither said anything, just shook their heads.

Her eyes darted to Michonne quickly and she clapped her hands as she stood, "Okay you know the drill"

Michonne sighed as she stood and made her way over to the medical chair. She lifted her shirt and undid her pants before sitting down. Rick moved to join her, his eyes glued to her face.

"You look beautiful" He whispered as he moved a stray lock from her face.

She looked up at him and gave a sad smile, "Do I? I don't feel it"

He leaned forward and kissed her forehead, "I promise you do"

She sighed as she smiled at him.

"Oh you two are-" The nurse beamed.

Michonne's smile fell as she turned and looked at her. Rick shook his head at the nurse again.

"...Never mind. Let's get started… Do you want to know the sex?"

Rick looked at Michonne, who looked at him expectantly, "It's up to you"

"No you decide, you know I don't mind" She gave a small shrug. While she did want to know, she wanted to encourage him to make decisions to.

He thought about it and gave a nod to the Nurse, "Yeah, sure"

"Alright, well here's your baby…"

Michonne's eyes instantly welled up at the sight of the little outline on the screen. She couldn't help but feel overjoyed. Her eyes darted up to Rick, who was looking down at her stomach. She gently squeezed his hand, urging him to look. She knew he felt her, as his eyes snapped shut for a few seconds, before he turned his head and looked at the screen.

She watched him stare at the screen, his eyes drinking in the image. He nodded slowly and looked elsewhere again. While it may have been crushing to someone else, Michonne was just grateful that he looked, as he hadn't at the previous scans. She felt as though they were making some degree of progress.

"And you are having a baby...boy!"

Michonne's eyebrows shot up, "A boy?"

"Yep"

"We're gonna have another boy" She almost whispered as she squeeze his hand again.

"Yeah… it's a boy" He looked at her with a furrowed brow.

She could tell his mind was struggling to process everything. He looked confused, as if he couldn't understand the words that were coming out of his own mouth. She reached up and stroked his cheek with her thumb.

"I love you"

He sighed, "I love you too"

After getting cleaned up and collecting a few images of the baby, they left the nurses office to go into work.

Rick was quite for the ride and she expected it. He often was whenever they were doing something that centred around their new addition. She just sat holding his hand in hers as they looked out the windshield.

"Milly's birthday is next month"

Rick glanced at her, "Oh?"

"Yeah. I thought we'd get her something from the kids"

He nodded, "Yeah, we can do that"

"Maybe we can talk to…" She squinted as she leaned forward, "Stop the car"

"What?" He glanced at her again, then tried to see what it was that caught her attention. It didn't take long as his eyes widened. He pulled over to the sidewalk with a screech of his tyres, "That little-"

"Carl?!" Michonne yelled as she opened her window.

Carl stopped walking with Lauren and turned around, both a picture of shock.

Rick undid his seatbelt and got out the car yelling, "Get your ass over here now! You too Lauren!"

The teens walked over quickly as Rick stomped around the car, while Michonne watched from inside.

"Why the hell aren't you in school?" He crossed his arms and tilted his head at the two of them.

Carl looked at a very nervous Lauren, then his father, "We didn't feel like going today…"

"What?!" Michonne questioned.

"Lauren, in the car now" Rick ordered, and the young girl scurried over quickly and jumped in the back.

Rick stared at Carl, and from Michonne's angle, it didn't look like he was even blinking.

"I don't know what was going through your mind when you thought that this was a good idea, but let me just tell you this, you will have nothing but a mattress and a damn candle in your bedroom if you try to pull a stunt like this again! Get in the car now!" Rick pointed at the vehicle and Carl sulked over.

He dragged his hands over his face as he watched him, then turned around and walked back to the driver's side of the car.

"This is why you don't sneak around! I said it before and I'll say it again because clearly you don't listen when I speak!" Michonne called to the back seat, "You're skipping school together? So you can both fail together? You can both sit around and hold hands and do nothing?!"

"Mom-"

"Is this the first time?! Don't lie to me because I'll go to that school office and go through every absent day you've had for this year!"

Carl and Lauren looked at each other and bowed their heads before Carl answered, "This is the third time"

Michonne's mouth dropped open, "I cannot believe the two of you!"

Rick shook his head as he began to drive again.

"As if you two don't spend enough time together! I just can't even deal with you both right now" Michonne felt tears burning her eyes as she got herself worked up. She mentally cursed her hormones, "I am so disappointed"

"Oh my god, Mom please don't-"

"Now look what you did to your mother!" Rick barked to the back seat, taking Michonne's hand in his, "You're both going back to school, I'm telling them what happened and I'm making sure they call your parents Lauren"

The younger girl sunk further in her chair, "Okay"

Michonne sat glaring into the windshield, completely shocked. She would have never thought Carl or Lauren would do such a thing, but she was quite obviously wrong. She wondered whose idea it was but realised it didn't matter because either way they were both not in school so they were both in trouble.

….

"The dress is perfect!"

"I feel like a hotdog"

Maggie waved a dismissive hand at her as she looked her up and down, her other hand resting on her persuading stomach.

"It fits like a glove so you better watch what you eat or else you'll suffocate yourself"

"Uh, I can't wait for this thing to be over"

"Rick's giving a speech right?" Maggie sat down on one of the chairs in the dressing room.

Michonne nodded as she joined her, still wearing her dress, "Yep. He's been working on it every night since they asked him to"

"Carl babysitting?"

"Nope. Their staying at my dad's for the night. Rick doesn't trust Carl alone after we caught him"

Maggie scoffed, "Of course not. Who would? I would have killed him"

She gave a little smile, "Oh the temptation was great. He's apologised profusely though, so we're taking it easy on him… well I am, Rick's pretty much stalking him"

Maggie smirked as she shook her head at her, "Oh didn't you have your scan yesterday?"

Her little smile faded.

Maggie's shoulders dropped, "It's a boy ain't it?"

Michonne nodded, trying to look apologetic.

"Oh don't be like that, I'm happy for you! We got one of each that will grow up together" Maggie placed her hand on top of Michonne's, "And plus, I've just come to terms with the fact that I don't make boys"

Michonne chuckled at her, "I bet Ally and Cleo are excited anyway. Names?"

"Demetria. Demi for short" Maggie grinned proudly.

"Aww little Demi! I love it! Alexandria, Cleopatra and Demetria. It fits perfectly"

"We have a theme going" Maggie joked, "What about you?"

"To be honest, I'm content with just calling him the baby" Michonne shrugged nonchalantly.

"Yeah I don't think you can do that once he passes two years old, so you and Rick better start thinking about it"

Michonne was tempted to pull a face but decided against it. Her friend was right, but it was easier said than done, and Michonne was hoping to have that discussion with Rick when he was comfortable talking about their third child together.

"How's it going in there ladies?"

Michonne stood when she heard the seamstress outside the door, "It's going great, thanks!"

"Alright call if you need anything!"

Michonne looked in the mirror again with a pensive expression as she turned side to side, examining the dress from every angle.

"Hey what's Judy doing for her talent?"

"She will be doing a little dance routine that Andrea's helping her with"

"Andrea can dance?" Maggie frowned as she shifted in her seat.

"She does some pretty basic moves that would look adorable when a kid does them so, yeah she's handling that"

"Sweet! When can we get tickets?"

"Oh Susan's already bought twenty so don't worry about that. She wants everybody and their mother to come and see her grand-baby on stage"

"I'm so excited to see her! Oh we should get there earlier so we're right behind the judges and have good seats"

"Oh we will. I want to get some good pictures of her too…" Michonne stood in front of Maggie so she could unzip her dress.

"Shit, the zipper's stuck" Maggie bit her bottom lip as she fussed with the material.

"Oh great" She attempted to suck in her stomach to help her pull it down.

"No it's snagged on that little piece of fabric that covers it. Hold on" Maggie tugged hard at the dress, and both their eyes popped open when they heard a ripping sound. Michonne noticed the dress instantly felt looser.

"Maggie…"

"Yeah… listen, I'll pay for that to get fixed… and that… but Uh, yeah, you can get out of it now…"

"Oh god…"


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3:**

 _'I'm trying'_

"Now would you look at this"

Rick's eyes darted all over the warehouse that had been converted into a laboratory. He wasn't completely familiar with drug paraphernalia, but he knew well enough what was being made there.

"Should we call Morgan in?"

He nodded, though he didn't look at Rosita, "Yeah do that"

"That's a lot of meth" Daryl called out as he walked towards them, "There's a lot of money to made in this room"

"Whoever set this up will be coming back then and I want us to know when they do" Rick rubbed the back of his head as he walked towards the warehouse doors, "I don't want anythan' moved until we got it all on file, then I want all the materials cleared out but leave the equipment in place, I don't want them running off if they see this place empty"

"Alright" Rosita nodded, then walked in the other direction.

"Your brother still in town?" He squinted at Daryl and shielded his eyes from the sun.

"Yep. He's staying with his girlfriend. We gonna pay him a visit?"

"Yeah. He probably knows all the dealers in Georgia" Rick sighed as he took out his mobile.

"Hey! We found a vehicle out back" Shane informed as he walked over to them, "Leon's just checking the registration out now"

Rick looked up from his phone and nodded, "Alright, good"

"You wanna put me on surveillance? I can do it?"

Rick could have groaned as he looked at his ex-best friend. While he had let go of all hostility towards him and was over their checkered past, he faced a new challenge with him. Shane was incredibly eager to do everything, and Rick wasn't sure if that was because he wanted to do well at his department or because he wanted to impress him. Either way Rick knew it could become a problem as Shane wouldn't wait for instructions sometimes.

"Yeah, you and Eric can stake out on the west side"

"Alright, will do" Shane gave a single nod as he walked away with determined eyes.

"Aye, I need to pick up Sasha's dress from the dry cleaners on the way" Daryl informed as he walked around the squad car to the passenger side.

Rick nodded as he got in the vehicle himself, "We can do that"

"You got your speech ready?"

Rick groaned, getting comfortable in his seat before starting the car, "As ready as it can be. I don't even know why they asked me to do it. I hate stuff like that"

"Better you than me" Daryl snorted.

"How about nobody? Everyone's gonna be drunk anyway so what does it matter?"

His friend shrugged, "Somethan' for the snotty types to talk about I guess"

It was Rick's turn to snort.

"Y'all set a date yet? Do I have to give a speech to that again?"

Rick could have laughed at the anxiety in Daryl's voice as he questioned about their wedding, "No date yet, but we're aiming for fall, and I don't think you need to give a speech again but Michonne might feel differently so, I'll get back to you on that"

"Can't I just use the first one again? No one will remember it, right?"

Rick did laugh at that, "No man will remember but I bet you every woman would"

"That's the damn truth"

….

"And why do you want to be little miss country princess Judith?"

"Because grandma Sue said I'd blow the other girls out the water-"

"Judy, honey you can't say that" Rick's mother winced as she looked at the little girl, "That's somethan' we keep to ourselves okay? We don't tell the other little girls that you're better than them-"

"Mom" Rick warned from his recliner.

His mother clenched her jaw as she side eyed him, "What I mean is, you wanna tell them why you would like to win. Is it because you like the pretty crown?"

Judith gazed around the room, "It's not a real crown though"

Rick raised an eyebrow at his daughter, wondering how she knew that information.

"No it's not a real crown but it's still really pretty and you get lots of toys and-"

"Money. I want the money. Then I can buy and real crown with diamonds on it", Judith beamed excitedly.

His mother wore a tight smile as she turned to him, "You're gonna have the time of your life when this one gets older"

"I already do with her mother. That's who she gets it from" Rick dragged his hand over his face.

"She knows what she wants" Michonne smiled as she walked in the living room, "Speaking of which, we need to leave by seven the latest-"

"I know, I know. We're just prepping Judy before they leave" Rick's eyes never left her face as she stood next to him.

"Alright, I'm gonna go take a shower so give mama a kiss Judy" Michonne cupped her face and kissed her on the nose.

"Bye baby!" Judith called to her mother's stomach.

Michonne and his mother laughed, while Rick mustered up a weak smile. He didn't want his anxiety about the baby to be obvious to his mother, as he knew she'd want to sit down and talk about it, which was something he wasn't ready for, with anyone.

After sending Judith up to get her bag, and calling Carl downstairs, he bid farewell to his children and thanked his mother for taking them over to Michonne's father's home for the night. Rick was grateful that the older man was taking them, as he point blank refused to let Carl be alone in the house.

He sighed as he walked into his bedroom, a small part of him dreading the evening's festivities. He already had so much on his mind, and having to read the speech he wrote was the last thing he wanted to tackle.

He took off his shirt and jeans before he headed to the bathroom, a large part of him excited about having the house child free. It wasn't something that happened often, if at all, so he wasted no time stepping out of his boxers as soon as he entered the room.

"They haven't even been gone an hour-" Michonne stuck her head out the shower with a frown.

"I was ready as soon as that front door closed" He grinned as he stepped in with her, closing the door behind him.

"You have no shame" She smirked as she moved her dreads over her shoulder.

He held her waist from behind and kissed along her wet shoulder, inhaling the vanilla scent that radiated from her, slipping his already hardened length between her thighs. He turned her to the adjacent wall so she could rest her hands against it, away from the stream of water.

"You can scream all you want now"

His stroked up and down her torso as he lazily rubbed his shaft along her slit, his hands stopping at her breasts and cupping the fuller mounds.

Her head fell back against his shoulder as he teased her, soft moans rolled from her lips. He slipped one hand back down to her waist, while he used other to guide himself to her entrance. She gasped and arched her back as he eased inside her, both her hands up against the wall.

Once he was completely buried in her passage, he steadied himself, placing one hand on the wall, and using the other to snake around her front and between her legs.

"Oh god, Rick"

She pushed her ass back against him when his index finger and middle finger found her clit, his mouth sucking and biting at her neck.

"Rick, do it"

He smirked against her skin as he refused to move within her, "You know what I wanna hear"

He was sure she tried to groan in annoyance, but instead moaned as he continued to play with her bud. She bounced her ass against him and he almost lost the will to continue on with his little torturous game.

"Stop that"

He pressed his middle finger against her bud and made quick little movements against it. She rested her forearms on the wall as she panted, still grinding on his length.

He bit his lip as he watched her, her subtle motions sending sensations through his core, "Come on, Michonne"

"Just do it" She huffed into the air.

He leaned forward and planted his mouth of her neck, right on her sweet spot. She cried out as she bucked her ass against him again, the action causing him to bite her skin harder than he intended.

"Oh god, fuck me Rick!"

He was surprised to have learnt something new about her, as he made a mental note that she likes to be bitten with more pressure. He quickly straightened up, with both hands on her hip, holding her in place as he slowly withdrew.

"You want it, huh?"

"Yes!"

He drove into her and pulled her hips back to meet his thrust, causing her to yell out. He did it again and his eyes nearly rolled back, but he didn't dare to even blink. He loved seeing her dark, smooth skin glisten when he took her from behind. The way her cheeks would jiggle when he entered her hard could make turn him into an imbecile.

He picked up the pace as the sight of her excited him more. He wanted to hear her cry out, after all, it would be a while again before he did.

"Turn around" He rasped to her as he withdrew himself and tapped her ass lightly. She weakly did as she was told and pressed her back against the wall. He hooked his hand under her thigh, raising her leg up so it could hang over his forearm. He aligned himself again and slid back into her, her arms wrapping around his shoulders.

His lips brushed hers as he began pumping in and out of her. He locked on her with hooded eyes, examining every square inch of her face. He felt a tightness in his chest as he gave his all to the woman he loved, but he knew there was something between them, both physically and mentally that was pushing them away again. He rested his forehead against hers as he looked down between them, her rounded stomach peeking out between her breasts. His eyes snapped shut and he dropped his head on her shoulder.

He felt her walls begin to grip him, and he was grateful for it. She called his name as she shattered, and he followed her lead, emptying himself deep within her. While it was physically satisfying, his mind was elsewhere.

"I'm trying, Michonne"

All he could hear was her breathing as it returned to normal and the stream of water beating down behind him.

"I know you are"

He sighed against her neck.

"What are you afraid of Rick?"

He frowned, unsure of how to answer the loaded question. He wanted to, he truly did, but it was almost as if saying it aloud will bring life to his fears, and he didn't want that. He wanted the irrational side of him to disappear on its own, and the new wall between them to come tumbling down.

She stroked the side of his face with the back of her fingers.

He took his hand in hers and kissed the centre of her palm, "I'm sorry… but I'm trying"

"I know"

…

"Hey! Both of you put that away now!"

Rick groaned and handed Daryl back his small flask of scotch after pouring a fraction in his champagne flute. Sasha narrowed her eyes at the two of them before she turned back to face the stage. He and Daryl shared knowing glances at each other before following suit.

"Thanks for leaving me with Mrs Smith, you jackass"

Michonne smacked his shoulder as she sat down, frowning at him in the process.

He rubbed the targeted area, "I warned you, I said this woman can talk, and what did you do? You asked her how her family was doing-"

"How was I meant to know she had a big family?!"

He sighed and closed his eyes, "I told you. I warned you she can talk"

"Yeah well, you're still a jackass"

He rolled his eyes as he handed her the glass of water he poured for her.

"That was a great speech sheriff"

He looked over his shoulder, and gave a tight smile as Rosita stood beside he and Daryl's chairs. He didn't have a problem with Rosita in the slightest, but with Michonne sat beside him, he found himself all of a sudden feeling nervous. While he'd admit that Rosita was a pretty girl, his mind was trained to see only two women, Michonne and everyone else. He didn't care to focus on anyone but his fiancée and mother of his children. But he was hell bent on not giving her fuel to feed her outlandish assumptions about he and Rosita.

"Thanks, Rosita" He gave her a single nod, before he sat back and motioned towards Michonne, "You remember my fiancée, Michonne?"

Rosita smiled warmly at her, "I do! Nice to see you again, how's the precious cargo doing?"

"He's doing great, thank you" Michonne rested her hand on her stomach as she answered the younger woman.

"You guys enjoy yourself, I'm off to find something stronger to drink" Rosita huffed as she looked around the room, before disappearing again.

Rick raised his eyebrows at Michonne.

She scowled at him, "Yeah yeah"

"You gonna stop calling her my little girlfriend now?"

She rolled her eyes at him, "Oh whatever-"

"Michonne?"

They both looked over their shoulders to see who had called her, and Rick nearly frowned at the tall brunette man smiled down at her.

"Oh hey Spencer! Oh my god, how are you?" She turned around to face him.

"I'm great, thanks, and you?"

"Yeah I'm great, are you all done with Med school now?"

"I'm am, and now officially training at Grady… I'm just here with my date, Rosita, I saw you talking to her so I had to come over and say hey-"

"Spencer is Carl's principal's son" Michonne quickly explained to Rick, "Spencer this is my fiancé, Rick"

"Nice to meet you sir" The other man held out his hand.

Rick took it firmly, resisting the urge to break it off and put it in his pocket, "You too"

"So the two of you are expecting I see?"

Michonne rested her hand on her bump, "We are"

"That's fantastic, you look absolutely radiant"

"She does, doesn't she?" Rick agreed, in a tone that seemed to have a hint of threat to it, as he stared him down.

Spencer eyes darted over to him, then quickly back to Michonne, "Well I have to continue my search for my date but it was great seeing you... and nice meeting you, hope you two enjoy your night"

"You two! Great seeing you" Michonne waved to him.

Rick gave him a single nod and a ghost of a smile.

They both watched him walk away for a moment before they turned to each other. Michonne whacked him on the knee.

"You have some nerve to call Rosita my little girlfriend when she and I barely even talk about anythan' outside work and then along comes this prick-"

"Stop it-"

"You look absolutely radiant" Rick mimicked as he pulled a face, "How the hell do you even know him? Carl's my kid too and I didn't even know his principal had kids-"

"Well if you bothered to turn up at the career day instead of sending someone-"

"The career day he had, what, two years ago? That's how you met him? That's how you greet someone you met once, two years ago?-"

"I've seen him around when he was back in town! He's actually very nice and he-"

"The last person you called nice turned out to be a creep-"

"Oh and you never had a creepy girlfriend? That was obsessed with me?"

His pursed his lips at her while she raised her eyebrows at him.

"Can we get a picture of y'all?"

They paused their quiet battle to look at the middle aged man who held the camera up across the table. Rick slipped his hand around her waist and she leaned in to him, both smiling as if they didn't have all the care in the world.

"That's great, thanks!"

Michonne attempted to pull away from him when the camera man walked away but he held her close.

"Get off me, you ass" She sang through her teeth baring smile.

"No. I will never get off you" He shook his head as he gazed at the side of her face.

Her smile turned from tight to shy. Her eyes glistened when they met with his.

"Don't try to run from me. Cause I'll catch you. I'll catch you like a cold" He grinned at her at her as he gave her hip a squeeze.

She covered her mouth as she laughed heartily, the kind of laugh she reserved just for him. It made his heart swell to see her that way.

"You are something else Grimes" She sighed as she rested her head on his shoulder.

"Yeah but you love me"

"I do"

He gently placed his head on top of hers and looked and around the room aimlessly. He was in a great mood, a confident mood. He discreetly took a deep breath as he moved his hand from her hip to her stomach. He was expecting his heart to race in his chest as he did but, it didn't. He felt fine to touch her. His thumb stroked over fabric and he was calmer than he thought he would be. He turned his head and placed a soft kiss just above her eyebrow. She rested her hand on top of his and for the first time since she told him about the pregnancy, he didn't feel any kind of anxiety when he thought about his new son.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4:**

 _'We stopped all that_ '

"We both just wanted to hang out together… outside of school… We know we shouldn't have done it…"

Michonne looked at Rick, who was staring at Carl with a stern expression. She looked back at her son, who was slouched down in the recliner, hair almost completely covering his eyes.

"Her dad doesn't want her hanging out with me anymore…"

"Are you really surprised about that? When you do thangs that you're not supposed to do then you can't expect everyone to just write it off as an innocent mistake. He's probably thinking you're a bad influence on his daughter since she weren't doing stuff like this before y'all got together and neither were you. I don't even know why the hell you-" Rick stood up, "I'm getting mad again. I'm getting mad just thinking about it all over again"

Michonne watched Rick walk out the room to pace the hallway while he calmed down. She was actually proud of him for managing to stay calm for as long as he had.

"Carl we just need you to understand that skipping school isn't something we're going to stand for. We get that you may want to spend all your time with Lauren but the fact is, you can't"

Carl stared at his mother.

"You have other responsibilities and so does she. Your education is important, especially if you want to go in to Law enforcement, so that should be something you're working towards, and then you can focus on your… relationship. But you'd both just be holding each other back if you don't try better yourselves individually. Your father and I love spending time together… well sometimes" She rolled her eyes, "But we also like our space because it makes our private moments together so-"

"Oh my god" Carl groaned and pulled his hood up, which was somewhat pointless as she could hardly see him under his hair anyway.

"Carl, I was going to say special-"

"Gross!" His voice was muffled as he pulled the drawstring tighter.

"You call it gross now but when you get to my age-"

"Please stop. I get it"

"Are you smoking?" Rick asked as he marched back into the room, "You better not be smoking!"

Carl groaned again, "No!"

"Good!" Rick turned to walk out again, but stopped and turned back to his son, "You better not be doing anythan' else along those lines either!"

"I'm not!"

"Good!" Rick turned and actually made it out the room this time.

Michonne sighed as she got up off the couch and headed over to Carl, squeezing on the edge of the chair with him, "You're both going to have to gain back our trust and her parents before we're comfortable about the thought of you two being around each other"

"How?"

"How many times have I told you, don't sneak around and don't let us find out anything. You can talk to us about anything, even the bad stuff… and yeah we might get mad every now and then but it's only because we care about you and you mean too much to us... And no more late night phone calls when you get your phone back."

He huffed in his hood, "Alright"

She rested her hand on his knee, "Good. Go help your sister tidy her toys away"

He moved from his seat and slunk out the room. She sat back watching him, finally releasing a low growl when he was out of earshot. She wondered if she would have to go through the same scenario with Judith and the baby when they reached their teens. She dreaded the thought.

She left the living room to see if Rick had calmed down. She found him slowly walking the length of the kitchen, rubbing the back of his neck as he did.

"You did pretty well in there" She smiled sarcastically as she approached him.

He sighed and shook his head, "I never thought I'd have any problems like this with Carl-"

"He's a good kid. He's just a little stupid right now, but he'll get it together. I know he will-"

"What if this is just the beginning? What if he starts doing stuff like-"

"I think you may have scared him off the rebellious path" She inserted in a matter of fact tone.

"I better have" He dragged his hand over his face and looked around the kitchen.

"He's just going through a phase where he wants to try to do what he wants-"

"Yeah and who did he get that from?" He frowned at her.

She frowned back, "Excuse me?"

"You weren't a little pain in the ass at that age?"

She scoffed, "Okay, I was in college, thank you very much and I just went to a lot of parties-"

"That's it! And got a little too drunk?"

She crossed her arms as she narrowed her eyes at him, "Not all the time-"

"But most of the time"

"...Why did I even tell you about all that…"

He tilted his head at her, "Because you never used to see a problem with it-"

"I was young and stupid-"

"And topless"

She pursed her lips, letting him know she was done talking about it.

He raised his eyebrows at her, "I've been young and stupid but I kept my clothes on"

She said nothing.

"You can deny it all you want but I knew you were a party girl when the first time we had sex you rode me like I was damn mechanical bull" He shook his head at her.

She bit her lips together as she tried not to laugh, "I don't recall that-"

"I do" He grinned as he held her waist and pulled her towards him, "Back then you used to suck the soul out of me in a good way-"

She squealed as she smacked his arm, "Stop that!"

"Oh we stopped that alright" He added dryly as he reminisced, "We stopped a lot things"

"Yeah yeah" She rolled her eyes at him, "I didn't hear you complaining before the ball, or after the ball, or both times this morning-"

"How about tonight we-"

"Leave the kitchen, Grimes"

…

"So let me just tell you about my night from hell with Shane"

"I'm all ears"

Andrea sat up straight in the chair as she looked at Michonne, "So we're at his house okay, we watched a movie, ate dinner, it was just a nice comfortable night in, I couldn't have asked for anything more, right?"

Michonne nodded as she ate her sandwich.

"So we start making out, like heavy petting on the couch. It's magical, but then I hear a cough and it's not from his mouth because he's on me right?"

Michonne's chewing slowed.

"So I shove him off me and sit up, and who's fucking standing there looking like that creepy bitch from the Ring?"

"Not Milly?" Michonne frowned.

"Her mother"

She put her sandwich down and crossed her arms.

"Yep. Lori, is fucking standing in Shane's living room for God knows how long watching us have dry sex. So Shane says to her, what the hell are you doing here? Where's Milly? And she's like, you gave me a spare key? I thought you wanted me to come over sometime?"

Michonne's face contorted in confusion and disgust.

"Yep! So I'm thinking, excuse me? And he's says, that key was for emergencies only! And she was said, you didn't say that! So they start arguing over me, and I get up to leave and Shane pulls me back down to sit on the couch. Lori starts leaning over me to shout at him and he's leaning in to me to shout at her and I'm just like stuck in the middle of them"

Michonne bit into her sandwich again as she watched her friend talk.

"So finally I manage to get out the way and I try to pull Lori aside because she was the most aggressive out of the two, so I hold her hand and smack! The bitch slapped me across the face"

Michonne's mouth almost dropped open, "No!"

"Across the face!"

"No she didn't!"

"5 fingers, one palm, my fucking face"

"What did you do?!"

"I grabbed her hair and just swung her around the living room like a rag doll!"

Michonne nearly choked on her sandwich as she tried not to laugh.

"His living room was an absolute mess by the time I let go of her" Andrea shifted in her seat, "But that's not the worst part. She starts crying, drops to floor sobbing and Shane looks at me like I've done something wrong!"

"No he didn't!" Michonne's face was beginning to hurt from all the expressions she was making at her friend.

"He was like, let me drop you home and I was like, excuse me? And he said it again so I said no, I'll call a cab. You stay here with her and play happy families with that psycho"

"And what did he say?"

"He refused. Point blank refused. So we argued for a little while as I left his house and went down stairs and by then it was early in the morning so I let him drop me home. I haven't even spoken to him since"

Michonne shook her head, "I am so sorry that all of that happened to you"

"I'm angry that all of that happened to me! I was really starting to care about him but that nutcase just came along and screwed it all up for us. And he's a prick for falling for her crying stunt"

Michonne winced at her, "Well maybe it was for the best? Have you tried to call him and talk about it?"

"Nope. I'm still mad about it" Andrea sat back and huffed in the chair, "And he hasn't called me so-"

"He probably knows you're still mad about it. Just give it time… you can work this out"

"Yeah… I hope your right"

Michonne shifted uncomfortably in her seat, "Uh god, this chair feels horrible"

"Really? You said you loved it the other day?"

"Well clearly I was wrong" She snorted as she sat back.

"We'll get you one of those doughnut things to sit on-"

"You're so funny" Michonne interrupted dryly.

"Oh how was the ball? Rick's speech?"

"It was pretty good actually. His speech was great… in fact we had a little moment..

he touched my stomach"

Andrea's eyes widened, "Really?"

"Yeah" Michonne smiled down at her lunch, "It was just, perfect. He's been touching it more since then and he doesn't get that look in his eyes like a freight train is coming towards him so…"

"I told you he'd come around! He just needed a little time to get his head around it all"

"Yeah, you were right"

Andrea put her hand behind her ear and leaned forward, "Sorry what was that?"

"I said you're an ass"

"Very funny"

…

"I still can't hear anything, mama"

Judith rested her head on her mother's stomach again, her little eyes gazing around the room as she concentrated on her task.

"You won't be able to hear anything Judy"

"When can I-" Judith gasped and looked at her bump, "I felt it!"

Michonne smiled down at her as she felt the movement too, "You feel that?"

"I did!" She put her head back against her mother, "Hi, baby brother! I'm your big sister!"

Michonne chuckled as she smoothed her daughter's hair back. She looked towards the front door when she heard it open, and Rick slunk in, exhaustion written all over his face.

"Daddy! The baby loves me!" Judith made a beeline for her father, "I felt him move!"

Rick raised his eyebrows at her, then looked to Michonne.

She nodded, "It's true. He was moving around in here"

"Well it looks like he already loves his big sister" Rick grinned as he gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"I'm gonna tell Carl!" Judith all but flew up the stairs as she went to tell her brother the exciting news.

Rick watched her go up the stairs and shook his head, "I wish she moved that fast when she has to clean her room"

"Oh no. You're asking for too much" Michonne joked as he walked over to her.

"I must be" He sighed as he sat down beside her, "Stand up for me"

"No. Why? I was here first" She frowned at him.

Rick chuckled, "Just stand up for a minute and you can guard your seat again when I'm done"

She stared at him as she slowly got up from the couch, "Now what?"

He pulled her between his legs as he sat on the edge of his seat. He lifted her top and his eyes danced around her stomach as he planted his hands on either side of it.

"What are you up to in there?" His words were almost a whisper.

She smiled as she watched him, wishing for the baby to move so he could feel it as well, "I think he's gonna be a fighter like his daddy"

"I think I'd rather he was skipping school like the other one"

Michonne laughed as she gently hit him. Then she felt the same fluttering sensation that she felt before, and she knew Rick did too as his eyes lit up.

"There he is" He leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss just above her belly button.

"I wonder what's got him so worked up today?"

"Probably Judith yelling at him every chance she gets" Rick grinned up at her, "We need to teach her about volume control"

"Leave my little fog horn alone" Michonne teased as she sat on his lap.

"At least we know we'll hear her when she's on stage" The two of them laughed together as they got comfortable on the couch.

He looked towards the stairs quickly then back at her, "Hey, listen to this, I saw Lauren's mother today"

She raised her eyebrows at him, "Really? What did she say?"

"They plan to move this summer"

"What?"

"Yeah. As soon as school's out"

"Oh Carl is gonna be-"

"Lauren doesn't even know"

Her jaw dropped open.

"Yeah so… I don't know how the hell we're gonna deal with that"

She shifted as she thought, "Do we tell him?"

"I thought about that… but then I thought if he says somethan' to her then they might do somethan' stupid like try to run away together"

"They wouldn't…" She stopped herself as she realised the lines were blurring between what she thought her son would and wouldn't do.

"Exactly. So we need to figure somethan' else out… maybe talk to her parents about it first?"

"Yeah but if they don't want to tell their daughter then we can't force them too"

He gave her a look that she knew all too well.

"Hey, none of that"

"We'll keep that as option two" He raised an eyebrow at her.

"We agreed that you were only allowed to threaten or beat people up if they threatened your family in some way. That's the only time Rick"

"I know, I know" He sighed as he dropped his head back on the couch, "I need to release my anger another way"

"So we'll talk to them? That's the plan?"

"Yes mam"

…

"She's wants to change her plea to guilty now"

Michonne's eyebrows shot up, "Really?"

"Yep" Milton nodded, sitting back in the chair in front of her desk, "She said took a wrench to the pipe and just kept hitting it until it knocked out of place, then that day she gave him and few beers, got him drunk and was going to leave him in the house and set it on fire, when he came and started an argument, and it all just went wrong from there"

"I knew it. I knew it was probably her" Michonne shook her head, pulling and face as she mimicked her fiancé, "Jessie wouldn't do that, Jessie's harmless-"

"Who said that?" Milton watched her, confused.

"I can't even tell you because you wouldn't believe me in the first place" She sighed, "So what about him? He used to abuse her and the kids right?"

"The kids will stay with their grandmother. He's not allowed contact with them while the case is ongoing since there are some pretty serious about allegations flying around"

"Good. She was wrong for what she did but he was worthless"

"Oh I heard about Gabriel and Terry's case from a friend at the courthouse, Gabriel got three years, Terry got two"

"Oh thank God. Bunch of perverts" She hissed as she shuddered.

"We have another possible pervert case coming this way. Ed Peletier"

"Carol's husband?" Michonne frowned.

"Yeah, apparently she found tapes and called the police, he's been recording couples… when they didn't know…"

Michonne's eyes widened, "In their homes?"

"A few, but mostly outside"

Her heart thumped in her chest, "What?"

"Yeah. In parks and alleyways, abandoned lots, you'd be amazed how many people engage in-"

"What?!"

Milton stared at her, "Yeah didn't you know? It's a common thing. A lot of couples like to 'roll around in the hay' as they say… but instead it's like, park benches…"

"Oh god, that's crazy… Hey Milton? can you give me a moment please? I need to call my dad and it's going to get a little emotional in here" She lied calmly.

"Sure. I need to make a few calls myself" Milton stood up and walked out the office.

Michonne waited until he closed her door before she snatched the phone off the receiver.

"Yeah?"

"Rick, what happened with Ed Peletier?"

"Ed? Uh… Leon brought him in last week. Said somethan' about his wife calling in, she found tapes of people having sex. I think it's like amateur porn or somethan'. Why?"

"Have you watched any of the tapes?"

"Nah, you know I'm busy with this damn narcotics case right now-"

"It's couples having sex in public places Rick. Not amateur porn"

He was silent for a moment, then replied, "What?"

"Yep! Couples having sex in parks, alleys, abandoned lots!"

He was silent again. Michonne was sure she could hear the cogs turning in his brain as he realised what that meant.

"Watch every single tape, Rick"

"I'm on it."

…

"Mimi! Look it!"

"Oh look Ally… you drew all over that wall, didn't you?"

Michonne tilted her head to get a good look at the scribble that the little girl had made in the hallway of her old home.

"My dinosaur!" Ally sang as she swayed side to side.

"Yep. That's definitely a dinosaur. How about we leave that for now…"

Michonne picked up the little girl and walked back to the living room, where Maggie was sat with Cleo and Judith.

"You have some new artwork by the kitchen"

Maggie's smile dropped.

"It'll wash off. Judy went to town on her bedroom wall when we first moved in" Michonne side eyed the back of her daughter's head.

"Kids" Maggie sighed as she put Cleo on the floor in front of her, "Okay so, wedding dresses"

"I've seen a few that I like… I know what style and cut I'd like… it's just finding a seamstress that can carry that all out perfectly" Michonne sat down on the couch next her daughter, who was playing on her phone.

"I wish I could give you the lady that made mine but… she was really old… and she almost didn't have done in time… she might not even be around anymore" Maggie grimaced.

Michonne winced at her, "That went downhill quite quickly… I think I'll try one in the city"

"They can get pretty pricey. Have you set a budget?"

Michonne ignored her.

"Michonne, I know you heard me!"

She groaned, "No, Maggie, I have not set a budget because I don't think that's necessary"

"And what about Rick?"

"Oh please, all I have to do is bend over in front of him and he'll agree to everything"

Maggie cackled heartily at her, "Who said romance was dead? At least Rick touches you... Glenn's scared"

"Of what?" Michonne frowned.

"You tell me! Every pregnancy. Every time"

"Oh… well maybe…" Michonne's eyes darted at the kids around them, "Dress up?"

Maggie scoffed, "By the time I'm done squeezing myself into somethan', I'd be too tired to do anythan'"

Michonne laughed at her, "Glad we can agree on that".


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5:**

 _'Don't you dare_ '

"Well. I guess why we know why you was late that day"

Rick glared at Leon, who's smile quickly dropped to a line. He looked at the small tape in his hand with the urge to crush it, but knew he couldn't.

"We'll put it in with the rest. They won't need to go through all the tapes anyway" Daryl assured awkwardly.

Rick dragged his hand over her face, then stood from the chair, knocking it over as he did. He paced the small room a few times as he replayed the video in his mind, the perfectly clear image of Michonne on top of him in his truck. He was sure he didn't see anyone that day they snuck off to the abandoned lot, but it was a few months beforehand so he couldn't be sure.

He left room, flinging the door open hard so it slammed into the wall. He knew he was meant to be keeping his temper in check, but something like this couldn't go unnoticed. He couldn't let the man go unscathed.

"It's about time! I want my damn phone call to my attorney!"

Rick ignored Ed while he took off his keys to unlock his cell.

"You're lucky I don't complain about the shit service-" Ed stopped talking once Rick was in front of him.

"Are you scared, Ed?" Rick asked him as he loosened his tie.

"Of you?" Ed snarled at him, "I can-"

Rick landed a hard, solid punch on his cheekbone, sending Ed flying back against the wall. Ed grabbed his cheek, growling as he got up and tried to lunge for Rick. Rick allowed him tackle him by his waist so he could punch him in his side, causing Ed to let go of him. He grabbed him by his shirt and channelled all his previous frustrations in to the final blow, knocking Ed on the side of the head. He crumbled to the floor. The temptation to continue to pummel him was great, but he was trying to control himself.

Rick watched him for a moment, then fixed his tie. He turned and left the cell, locking it as Ed groaned and rolled around on the floor.

"Well… I guess you're done controlling your temper?" Leon stood with his hands at his sides, looking down at Ed.

"Guess I am" Rick sighed as he walked away.

He decided against telling Michonne about the tape, as he knew she would be horrified, and considering their little public endeavour was his idea in the first place, he knew he'd be first in her line of fire. He just hoped to bury the tape among the rest of the evidence and pray that she would never ever hear about it.

…

"Alright, has she got her shoes, her outfits, her dance CD, and hair accessories packed?"

"For the tenth time Rick, yes it's all in their"

Rick frowned at Michonne, knowing she wasn't in a good mood all morning, but he had noticed she didn't get much sleep the night before. He offered to sleep somewhere else so she had more space but that only seemed to agitate her even more.

She pulled her sunglasses down from her hair and sighed as she picked up the small dust bags that contained Judith's clothes.

"Carl! Get your sister in the car!" Rick called as he grabbed the tiny pink suitcase that held the remainder of her stuff.

Carl carried Judith on his back out the door, while Rick looked around, hoping they had everything packed. He never thought he would be so involved in his daughter's pageant, but he enjoyed seeing her so excited about something, though he didn't know how he would fair if she didn't win. He convinced himself that she would.

"Alright, we all ready?"

Rick started the car but still looked around at his family. His kids both nodded, while Michonne sat staring straight ahead. He would have groaned, but he didn't need to annoy her any more than she already was.

"Are you excited Judy?" Carl asked his sister.

"Yeah… can I play-"

"Here" Carl groaned, taking out his phone to give to her.

"You want to pull over for some tea or somethan'?" Rick asked Michonne as he glanced at her.

She sighed, "No, thanks"

He glanced at her again, "What's the matter?"

"Nothing…"

"Are you-"

"Rick! Please!"

Everyone in the car jumped at her outburst. Rick's jaw hung as he pulled up to a stop sign and looked at her. Carl and Judith both looked wide eyed at their parents.

"I'm sorry, okay?" Michonne rubbed her temples, "I hardly got any sleep, my head hurts, the smell of this car is making me feel sick and your voice is just so damn deep!"

Rick snapped his mouth shut as he turned his attention to the road. He chastised himself for forgetting how irritable she could get when she was pregnant. While he knew not to take it to heart, it did make him a little agitated, as whenever she was in that kind of mood, she would snap at the smallest things. Carl and Judith sat quietly in the back seat for the duration of their journey, and so did Rick.

"Oh good you're on time! I made William hold us a great spot to get ready in" Rick's mother smiled as she met them in the car park of the hotel.

"How's it looking in there?" Rick asked as he took out Judith's clothes from the trunk.

"Quite busy. Way more little girls than I thought but it's fine. I checked out the girls in her division and they're all-"

"Mom" Rick warned.

She clenched her jaw at him, "Alright fine. Come on. Carl, you can sit out with your grandfather while we get her ready"

"Thank God. I'd be useless anyway" Carl mumbled behind Rick.

"Let's get this show on the road!"

"Hey y'all!"

They all turned to the sound of the familiar voice. Rick's eyebrows shot up when he saw Shane approaching them, a large smile on his face.

"Hey?" Rick greeted, though he was trying to figure out what the other man was doing there.

"Y'all here for the pageant too?" He asked as he smiled down at Judith, before looking up at Rick's mother, giving her a single nod, "Mrs Grimes"

His mother pursed her lips at him, before taking Judith by the shoulders, "Come on sweetie, let's go get you ready"

Rick watched them begin to walk away, but still spoke to Shane, "So Uh… Milly's in it too?"

"She is" Shane rubbed his head as he tore his eyes away from his mother, "Her aunt entered her in"

"Ah well, ain't that nice" Rick nodded, "Lori?"

"Yeah… she'll be here a little later"

Rick was sure he heard Michonne and Carl groan behind him, "Well that's… somethan'..."

Shane nodded and looked behind at his family, his eyes widening as the sight of Michonne, "Oh well look at you! Congratulations!"

"Thanks" She smiled, hand resting on her stomach.

"Well let's get in there before they start without us" Rick insisted, purely because he had come to hate how Shane looked at Michonne.

…

"She walked a little too fast for her opening, but she smiled and she made eye contact with the judges so that's a good thing"

Rick looked down at his mother quickly, but kept his eyes on the stage. He was waiting for Judith to appear for the questions and talent portion of the competition. He didn't think he'd be so anxious about watching her perform, but he was. All his friends were there to watch and cheer her on, and he was glad she had so many people to support her.

"Well that last act was terrible so she'll look great up against her"

Rick glanced at his mother again, shaking his head at her.

"She's all set!" Andrea hissed as she joined them, taking a seat. Rick bit the inside of his cheek when he realised Andrea had taught his daughter a dance routine, and the woman's rhythm was almost non-existent. She sat down, purposely ignoring Shane, who was looking back at her, a few rows ahead, with Lori on the other side of him.

Michonne came and stood beside him, still in her bad mood. He hadn't said anything to her since they were in the car, and she seemed to prefer it that way. He saw her eyes darted over to where Lori was sat, and she rolled her eyes, even though the other woman wasn't looking at her.

"...Contestant number twelve, Judith!"

Rick's attention focused on the stage as Judith walked on, wearing a black and gold dance outfit, with her hair in a bun.

"Well hello there Judith, you look amazing! So can you tell me why you'd like to win little miss country princess?" The presenter held the microphone towards her. Rick tensed.

"Because I want to be a princess and wear a crown"

The crowed all chuckled at her and Rick relaxed, only a little bit.

"Oh that's lovely! Now tell me, If you won a lot of money, what would you spend it on?"

Judith's eyes lit up, "Diamonds"

The presenter raised his eyebrows at her, "Well! They do say diamonds are a girl's best friend! Do you like diamonds a lot?"

"Yep. My daddy buys my mama diamonds, and she lets me play with them"

The crowd all chuckled at her, while Rick snuck a glance at Michonne as he nudged her, though she swatted him away. His eyes met with Lori's as he looked back towards the stage, though she quickly turned away, leaving him to frown at the back of her head. He didn't know why he looked at Michonne, but he did, and her eyes were narrowed at him. He groaned as he turned back at the stage.

"Oh aren't you precious! And who's your favourite person in the world, and why are they your favourite?"

Judith looked around at the crowd as she thought, then back at the presenter, "My big brother Carl, because he always plays with me"

Carl sat up straighter when he heard that, a large smile spreading across his face.

"Oh I'm sure he'd be pleased to hear that! And lastly, what do you want to be when you grow up?"

"A dancer"

"Is that what you're going to be doing for your talent today?"

"Yep!" Judith smiled.

"Oh that's great! Well good luck Judith! And I hope you have fun dancing! Contestant number twelve, Judith!"

"That's my grand-baby!" Rick's mother cheered as she jumped up and down.

Judith smiled as she took her position, one hand on her hip and the other pointing to the ceiling. Rick's brow furrowed as the music started, and it was something he wasn't familiar with.

He quickly glanced at Michonne, whose eyes were wide and her mouth agape.

He looked at Judith, who swinging her little hips from side to side. Rick felt as if his heart had stopped.

"Lord, help me" His mother strained as she watched in horror.

"Prince? Really, Andrea? Prince?!" Michonne hissed across to her friend. Andrea nodded excitedly at her as she clicked her fingers.

Rick was mortified at the fact that his seven year old daughter was attempting to body roll across the stage.

" _Get off_!" Sasha sang along, clicking her fingers, " _twenty-three positions in question one night stand_!"

Daryl shook his head at his wife.

Judith grinned at the judges as she shook her hips in time with the beat. Rick gave up and turned his attentions to Andrea, who was stood in front of her seat doing the routine in time with Judith.

Michonne sighed as she pinched her nose bridge, her eyes closed and her head down, "I'm gonna kill her"

"You ain't the only one"

…

"For her to make it this far means she's going to be placed in the top three"

Rick didn't need to look at his mother to see her biting her nails from nerves. He was trying to remain calm himself. He didn't know what to expect after her questionable routine, and he hoped she wouldn't be crushed if she didn't win.

He looked over to where Shane's family was, where Milly was now sat between her parents as she wasn't a finalist. She didn't seem too upset about it, as she won quite a few smaller awards.

"Our second runner up, for the little miss country princess title is…"

Everyone leaned forward as they anxiously stared at the presenter. Judith was stood in the middle of a line of girls, her hair in large curls, wearing a light blue dress that was covered in crystals, with a ruffled skirt. She looked just as excited as her grandmother.

"Contestant number sixteen, Anabelle!"

"Alright so that's good. She's not third, so that's good" Rick's mother assured as she gripped his arm. A little dark haired girl stepped forward, though she didn't look pleased to be receiving third place.

"Congratulations Anabelle and well done!... Now our first runner up for the little miss country princess title is…"

"The hell he drag it out for so long?" Daryl gruffed, as Lily bounced on his lap.

"Contestant number twelve Judith!"

"My grand-baby! Oh my god, my grand-baby!"

While his mother jumped up and down beside him and the others all stood and cheered Rick couldn't help but feel a little unsatisfied.

"Second place?" He frowned at Michonne.

Michonne tore her eyes away from the stage to look at him, "Yes, second place!"

"Did you see her up there? And she got second place?" He pressed, disbelievingly looking back and forth from Judith to Michonne.

"Rick considering this is her first one, that's really good-"

"But she wasn't really good, she was the best one there" He scanned around the room for the judges table and took a step to go over to them, when Michonne grabbed him.

"Don't you dare" She warned him.

"I just want to know how they decided that she should come second-"

"Rick. No. She's happy and if you do anything to change that, then I won't be happy, and if I'm not happy" She breathed through gritted teeth, "Then _you_ won't be either"

He stared at her, his eyes darting down to the death grip she had on his arm, "So you think she deserves second place?"

"No, of course I think she was better than everyone else but I'm her mother so I'm completely biased" She released him and turned back to the stage, where Judith was getting her picture taken with the other winners.

Rick bit the inside of his cheek as he tried to talk himself out of going over to the judges. He looked at Michonne again and she gave him a warning glance. He scowled at her before looking at his daughter, who did look very happy with her win. He relented, keeping his focus only on her.

"Y'all must be over the moon for her"

Shane approached them with Milly, while Lori hung back with her sister. Rick had only a handful of memories of her, as when he and Lori were together, she and her sister had stopped talking shortly after. He never knew why Lori didn't like to talk about her.

"Yeah, we are" Rick nodded, turning his attention to his daughter, "You did great Milly"

"Yeah, you have a lovely singing voice" Michonne smiled down at her.

"Thank you" Milly blushed, her brown eyes glowing up at them. She had a yellow dress on, in a style similar to Judith's.

"That was… some dance Judith did up there" Shane winced, as if he was struggling to find the words.

Rick cleared his throat, his eyes darting behind Shane, to a very annoyed looking Andrea, who was stood with Maggie and Glenn, "Yeah, her ex-godmother taught that"

Michonne whacked him on the arm, "So I hear your birthday's coming up Milly?"

"Yeah, I'm having a party" She smiled, "Can Judith come?"

"Nice" Carl said flatly as he caught the tail end of the conversation, but still gave her a hug, "Hey Milly, you did great out there"

"Thank you" She looked up at him, "You can come to my party too"

"Yeah, y'all a more than welcome to come, it'll be at my house" Shane offered, "It's next weekend"

"Sure, we'd love to" Michonne answered for them. Rick was glad she did because he wasn't going to say anything at all.

"Oh good" Shane's eyes darted behind Michonne, "Hey! Well done Judith"

Judith appeared with her grandparents, who were both glaring at Shane. Rick wasn't really surprised that they would still react that way towards him, after all they had known him since he was a boy, and they were just as shocked as he was when they found out Shane had left with Lori.

"Thank you" Judith beamed, wearing her sash.

"So I'll give you the details in the week and I'll see y'all on Saturday?"

"Yeah, that's fine" Rick agreed.

"Alright then, y'all enjoy your evening now"

"Bye!" Milly waved as she and Shane turned to leave, and the others did the same to them.

"Bye!" Judith waved back before planting herself in front of her father, holding out her second place tiara, "I told you it wasn't really daddy"

Rick sighed and took it from her, "It's still pretty though, ain't it?"

Judith stared at him with serious eyes.

"The nerve of that-" Rick's mother cursed as she watched Shane and his family leave the hall.

"Okay Susan let's get these bags out of here" Michonne tried to distract her, though she still took the opportunity to hiss at Rick, "Don't think I didn't see her looking at you"

Nothing but disbelief etched on his face. He didn't have a chance to question her as she quickly began to gather their things to leave. He didn't even know why Lori looked back at him, and he didn't care to find out either, though he knew none of that mattered to Michonne.

"You want my tiara Lily?" Judith asked her friend as they began to walk out the hall.

Lily nodded excitedly.

Judith held out her hand to her father, and he gave it to her, then she put it on Lily's head, "Now we both won"

"Aww!" Sasha cooed as she watched the two of them.

"Nah, watch, she's expecting her daddy to get her a real one" Daryl smirked as he nudged Rick, "She knows what she's doing"

"She does. And it worries me" Rick sighed as he looked ahead, "I'm glad the next ones a boy. They don't ask for much"

"That's not true; it's just every time I ask for something you just ignore me." Carl said dryly beside him.

"Hush, boy" Rick side eyed him.

"See."


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6:**

 _'Hey! Come here'_

"I don't have anything to do with that warehouse, I was looking for somewhere to go and take a piss the other night and they arrested me!"

"At six in the morning?" Milton squinted at him from behind his glasses.

"I was heading to a friend's house"

Michonne sighed, "Thomas, you need to understand why this all sounds like bullshit. They find a warehouse full of drugs… you turn up at six in the morning, they see you go in, and come out making a phone call, looking around the area. Why do all that if you're just taking a piss? And on top of that, you won't give us the details of the friend you were going to see so they can't collaborate with your story. You need to tell us the truth, if you want us to get you the best deal out of all this"

Thomas sat back in his chair and huffed.

Michonne tried not to groan, "Look, you're obviously one of the lower level guys in this right? That's why you were the only one out there to check on your little set up? Do you think you'll be able to post bail?"

"I can get somebody-"

"Take it from me Thomas, I've heard plenty of people say that but when push comes to shove only a handful actually get someone to pay for them. Now the guys above you are all fine. They can all get out and put together a watertight alibi because they're rarely seen getting their hands dirty, but someone like you won't be so fortunate because you're the person they send to do their work for them. And once you get arrested, they'll just find a new you"

His brow furrowed as he absorbed her words.

"You should be looking out for you, because everyone else involved in this is doing the same. So if I were you, I'd sing like a canary because saving them won't lessen your sentence. You'll probably do fifteen to thirty years for something you didn't even set up, while they're out enjoying their lives, at home with their friends and families, while you rot away in a cell…"

Thomas looked from her, for Milton, then back to her again, "Alright fine. I'll talk"

"Time to go!" Leon announced as he burst into the office.

Thomas shook his head in annoyance, "Five more minutes?"

"Nope. Don't work like that I'm afraid, now let's keep it moving" Leon tilted his head towards the door.

Thomas stood and gave Michonne and Milton a quick nod before he left. They both collected their papers and went their separate ways, Michonne went to go find Rick while Milton signed them out.

"We're going shopping for a present for Milly after I pick the kids up" She informed as she walked in his office.

He looked up from piece of paper he was reading and nodded, "Alright... How'd it go with Thomas?"

"He was going to talk but time ran out" She sighed.

"What? Really?" Rick looked instantly annoyed.

"Yeah. But I think I got through to him so he might talk to you guys… you never know"

He dragged his hand over his face, "We'll question him as soon as possible"

"Good" She winced as she rested her hand on his desk in an attempt to take some of her weight off her feet.

"I don't even know why you're still wearing those thangs" Rick shook his head at her as he his wandered down to her stomach, "You should probably think about taking it easy soon"

She stood up straight and crossed her arms, "With a wedding to plan, a baby on the way, and a house to redecorate?"

"Are you worried about money?" He raised his eyebrows at her in a mocking fashion.

"You know what I mean!" She insisted in an irritated tone, "I probably have to take a leave sooner than I hoped"

He shrugged at her, "The sooner the better right?"

"Why am I even discussing this with you" She snarled as she turned to leave

"Hey! Come back here" He instructed.

"What for?" Her snarl quickly turned into a scowl.

"Cut the attitude and come over here" He grinned as he sat back in his chair.

She didn't want to give in to him, but she had a problem with turning him down when he looked at her with lust filled eyes. She slowly made her way back over to his desk, and purposely stood a few feet away from him.

He curled his finger at her and her knees almost buckled. She took two more steps forward.

"What?" She demanded, though she was anxious to find out.

He pulled her on to his lap, resting one hand on her thigh and the other on her back, "What do you want for your birthday?"

"Pearls" She answered without missing a beat.

His brow dropped to a straight line, "You've been waiting to tell me that-"

"I have" She grinned.

He raised his eyebrow at her, "You didn't give me a kiss this morning"

"I didn't like you this morning" She gave a little shrug.

"I didn't even do anythan' besides breath" He winced at her.

"That's all it took" She answered dryly.

"But you like me when I do this…" He kissed along her jaw and to her neck.

Her body was quick to react, "Maybe…"

"Don't go telling lies now" He whispered against her skin.

"Well, would you look at this? Is this where all my tax dollars go?"

Michonne groaned at the sound or Merle's voice. She peeled herself off Rick and stood up, already glaring at the other man. Merle smiled at her as he rested on the door frame, Daryl by his side.

"Can you even spell Tax?" She snarled at him.

"Don't get mad at me cause I caught y'all at it-" Merle's eyes dropped to her stomach, "Oh, well it looks like y'all don't get caught enough-"

"Hey!" Rick barked at him as he rose from his seat, "Sit down and shut up!"

Merle rolled his eyes as he made his way over to one of the seats in front of Rick's desk.

"You better disinfect that seat" She snatched her purse off the desk as she snarled at Daryl's brother.

"You are so rude to me and I haven't done a damn thang-"

"Turning up to my wedding drunk? Turning up to my son's birthday high?" Michonne relayed as she stepped closer to him, only stopping because Rick held her arm, "Crashing in to my car when you were drunk and high?!"

Merle blinked at her, "I plead the fifth-"

"Oh you're gonna be pleading something-"

"Alright!" Rick pulled her back just as Merle ducked to avoid her purse, which she swung at him.

"You gotta calm down 'Chonne" Daryl suggested as he sat on his desk.

"Exactly. You go on, I'll get dinner later" Rick gently nudged her towards the door.

Merle waved goodbye to her, "It was nice seeing you-"

"Shut up!"

…

"So… won't it be a little weird? With you… dad, Lori… Shane? All in the same room?"

Michonne grimaced, "We'll try not to make it weird"

"You have to tell dad that. He always looks like he wants to punch, Shane" Carl shook his head, "Hey, how come grandma and grandpa don't like him? I get why dad doesn't like him, he's the guy Lori left us for right?"

Michonne recoiled from the toy she was about to pick up, caught off guard from the question.

"Mom? Tell me?"

Her eyes darted down to Judith, who was playing on her brother's phone in the shopping cart. She inwardly groaned, "Well, you were right about Shane being the person Lori left with… but he was also your dad's best friend"

Carl's eyes popped open, "What?"

She winced, "Yeah… since they were kids"

Carl's eyes traced the shelves as he absorbed the information, "No wonder they hate him"

"Yeah… I mean, you know your grandparents probably won't ever let it go but your dad's trying to for your sake, and Milly's"

"Yeah but, it's still pretty crappy" Carl shrugged as they walked down the aisle, "I mean he's nice to me and Judy but… still"

"He's trying to right his wrongs, and I think it's a commendable quality, but obviously it's not as simple as just saying sorry"

Carl sighed as he thought about it, "I get it"

"Carl! Your phone!" Judith informed as she held it out to him.

He took it from her and smiled at the screen before putting it to his ear, "Hey Lauren"

Michonne shook her head as she continued to push the cart.

"Mama, how do babies get in the mommy's tummy?" Judith asked as she looked at her own mother's stomach.

Michonne inwardly groaned again, "You know what honey? I think that's a question your daddy wants to answer for you, so as soon as we get home we'll ask him together, okay?"

"Okie doke!" Her little blue eyes rolled around the shelves, "Can I get a toy too?"

"Sure, let's find you something after we get a present for Milly"

After an unbelievably long search for a gift, the family were finally able to head home. Michonne was tired, and feeling somewhat irritable, but she tried not to let Carl and Judith pick up on that. When they arrived at their home, she couldn't say she was surprised to see Rick on a step ladder at the front of the house, appearing to fix the porch light.

Carl frowned at his father through the window, then looked at his mother, "Dad's in trouble?"

"No but he's going to be" She sighed as she watched him, taking the keys out the ignition.

Carl smirked, as climbed out the car. He helped his sister out, while Michonne took the bags from the trunk of the car. She eyed Rick as she walked up the drive, slightly amused, though she didn't show it. He had a habit of fixing things around the house whenever she was mad at him for holding information back, and she found it sweet that after all the years, he still chose that method to get back in her good books. However the problem was she didn't have any idea what he'd done.

"Y'all go get washed up, dinner's ready" He instructed to Carl and Judith as he climbed off the ladder.

Michonne looked up at the light as she stepped on the porch, then dropped her eyes to him.

"I ordered the paint for the baby's room too" He offered with a small smile.

She narrowed her eyes at him, "What did you do?"

He clenched his jaw as he took the bags from her, "Go take those damn heels off"

She snarled at the back of his head, though she was desperate to get out of her shoes. She was desperate to get out of her work attire entirely. While she enjoyed her work, she was beginning to question how long she could continue working. She knew Rick would prefer for her to take her maternity leave as soon as possible, but she dreaded spending her days home alone until the baby arrived.

Once she changed into Rick's pyjama shirt and a pair of sweatpants, she headed back down stairs to the dining room, where Carl was already head first in the pizza box, and Rick and Judith were in a deep conversation.

"So when a mommy is forty, and married…" Judith relayed to her father with a confused expression, "Then she can have a baby in her tummy?"

"And remember, the daddy has to like the husband. If he doesn't, then the mommy has to find a new one" Rick insisted calmly.

Judith nodded as she took in her father's words, "Did granddad like you daddy?"

Rick's smile tightened, "He did"

"Why did he stop liking you?" Judith quizzed.

Carl nearly choked on a slice of pizza as he tried not to laugh. Michonne watched the conversation, highly amused.

"Because Daddy let mama move into a different house" Rick informed vaguely.

Judith frowned, "So does he like you again?"

"He does" Rick nodded.

"Good" Judith smiled, "I like you too, daddy"

Rick beamed as he smoothed her hair back, "And daddy absolutely loves his sweet little angel… now remember, you have to be forty, married and…"

"And daddy has to like my husband" Judith recited happily as she picked up her slice of pizza.

"That's my little princess" He grinned at her, before turning to Carl and Michonne, who both gave him unimpressed looks. He focused his attention on Carl, "And the same goes for you"

Carl snorted, "You were twenty one and unmarried when you had-"

"Hush boy".

Michonne bit back a smile as she was about to break off a slice of pizza, when the doorbell rang. She and Rick both exchanged questioning glances, but she still got up to answer the door.

Her face went through a range of expressions as she looked at Sasha, who held a large bag in one hand and a smaller pink one in the other. Lily stood in front of her, holding a teddy bear that was missing an arm and wearing the tiara Judith gave her from the pageant.

"Okay, come in" Michonne stepped aside and let them walk in, "Go get something to eat in the dining room Lily"

The little girl skipped ahead, while Sasha headed for the living room. Michonne followed behind her, confused but guessing she and Daryl had an argument.

"Talk to me" Michonne insisted as she joined her on the couch.

"That-That asshole" Sasha breathed angrily, "He let Merle move in"

Michonne's eyes snapped open, "What?"

"Yep! Merle's truck got written off, so he has nowhere to stay and he needs information for a case so he agreed to let him stay while he helped him"

Michonne grimaced, "Oh god…"

Rick appeared at the doorway, looking just as confused as Michonne did, "What happened?"

"They had a little…" Michonne winced at him, wondering if he had known about Daryl choice.

He did, "Oh…"

"Daryl moved Merle in…"

"Yeah..." Rick also winced, then he sighed, "His truck got written off and we needed to-"

"Yeah…" Michonne pursed her lips at him, hoping he'd understand that she wanted him to stop talking about it.

"Well you and lily are more than welcome here" He announced as he took the duffel bag from in front of her, "I'll go set up the guest room"

"Thanks you guys" Sasha attempted to smile at them, "I'm sorry to just turn up like this, it's just I was so angry and my phone died and Lily has school so I couldn't-"

"It's alright!" Michonne insisted, rubbing her friends back, "Like Mr secrets over there said, you're more than welcome"

Rick stopped at the bottom of the stairs, tipping his head back as he sighed, before stomping up the stairs, mumbling something incoherent.

Sasha squinted at her, "Is this a good time?"

"Oh yeah, just a normal day in the Grimes household"

…

"You knew what Daryl was going to do?"

"Yes"

Rick climbed on the bed and pulled her by the back of her calves towards him. She lay in front of him, with her arms folded and her expression unfazed.

"I told him not to. Told him it was a bad idea but he felt like he had no choice" He leaned over her, both hands on either side of her head.

She blinked at him, "Yeah but now look-"

"They'll figure it out" He frowned, "He won't like his family away from him for too long and he won't want his brother there for too long either"

"Yeah", She uncrossed her arms, "Did you call him?"

He groaned as he sat back, kneeling so he can rest his hands on her bump, "Yeah… He's… he's mad too"

She shook her head in despair as she peered up at the ceiling.

"He was gonna come over here, he thought she went to her mom's", Rick explained.

"Good thing he didn't. She needs to calm down and so does he"

He smirked as he stroked the sides of her thighs, "Remember when we argued like that and you took Carl to Andrea's?"

She squinted at the memory, "Oh yeah…"

"We hadn't even been together for that long and he gladly went with you-"

"Oh yeah!" She chuckled, "What did we even… Oh I remember. You were keeping secrets from me-"

"I was not-"

"What are you hiding now, Rick? Why were you fixing the porch light? Why'd you order paint?"

"Because thangs needed to be done-"

"That's a lie" She narrowed her eyes at him, "You let me find out any-"

Her words came to an abrupt halt when she felt Rick's fingers stroke the crotch of her underwear. She frowned at him and he grinned at her.

"We've got guests, so you better bite the pillow"


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7:**

 _'Put it on'_

"She didn't even let me talk! She just screamed at me the whole damn time! Marching around the house and picking up her stuff"

Rick glanced over at his friend, listening to his tale.

"He's not even in the goddamn house! He's sleeping on the old couch in the garage! The doors locked so he's not getting in the house and I'd beat him within an inch of his life if I found any drugs on my property!"

Rick sighed as they stopped at a red light, "I told you. None of that matters, she's still gonna be mad"

"We need him for what? A few days? Just a few days so we can get some information out of him and then he's gone!"

"Look, Sasha's with us and she and Lily are fine, so the sooner we get what we can get for Merle the better"

Daryl groaned, "She cuss me out when she get there?"

"Up until this morning" Rick answered as he stated out the windshield.

He groaned again.

"You can come over later, talk to her…" Rick winced, "Well, let her talk, just agree to everythan'... smooth it over"

"I'm gonna have to" He scowled as he looked out the passenger window.

 _"Uh Grimes… You have your phone on you? Over"_

Both men frowned at the radio, before Rick reached for the receiver, "Yeah, why?"

 _"You might want to answer it. Over"_

His frown didn't falter as he hung the receiver back up.

"What's that about?" Daryl watched him take out his phone.

Rick quickly glanced at the screen, "Fourteen missed calls from Michonne?"

"The baby?"

"I doubt it, I would have heard her from here"

He waited until the pulled in to the police department parking lot before he called her back.

"My phone was on silent, what's-"

"You ass!"

Daryl looked at him with wide eyes before stepping out the car.

"When I asked you if Ed had caught us on tape, what did you say to me?"

He groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"No, we're fine! I checked all the tapes! Then Andrea goes to views the tapes and who's on the first tape she sees? Me! Why does she see me Rick, if you said there was no tape?!"

He slowly brought the phone back to his ear, "Ironically, I didn't want you to get worked up-"

"So you lied? You waited until someone could come and tell me?!"

"No, I just hoped you never heard about it-"

"They would have shown it in the courtroom you jackass!-"

"Okay, can you calm down, think about the baby-"

"Oh the baby! We probably have his conception on tape!"

He winced as he moved the phone from his ear again.

"Is that why you fixed the damn porch light? You thought a porch light would make me feel better about us getting caught fucking in your car?!"

He sighed, knowing she didn't actually want him to answer the question, "I was wrong alright. I'm-"

"Who else has seen it?"

He tried not to sigh, "Just me, Daryl and Leon. That's it-"

"Oh! Well that's not awkward!"

"I dealt with him okay? As soon as I found out I was in that cell-"

"Oh that just makes it all better?! It's okay that I lied about our sex tape, because I'm Rick Grimes! I beat up the guy and I fixed a damn porch light and ordered some paint! See, that fixes all our problems, doesn't it?!"

He stared through the windscreen as he listened to her mock him on the phone, "I'm sorry, alright? I should have told you"

"Oh don't you worry, I'm gonna show you what sorry looks like"

She hung up and he sat staring at the phone for a while, before finally exiting the vehicle. Daryl threw his cigarette butt down and side eyed him.

"She find out about…"

"Nah… she found out about the tape" Rick sighed.

Daryl's eyebrows shot up, "You didn't tell her about that?"

"Nope. Real smart of me right?" Rick shook his head as they walked towards the building, "Good thing her birthday's coming up"

"How's that going?"

"It's… going"

…

"So glad y'all could make it!"

Rick made a pathetic attempt to smile at Shane, as he had grown accustomed to. He handed the other man the medium sized gift for his daughter and followed his family into the one story home. It was nicely decorated for the occasion, with a few familiar faces scattered around the living area.

"How long are we staying?"

Michonne ignored him, "Why don't you go play with Milly, honey?"

Judith nodded and went over to the other girl.

"So, what can I get y'all to drink?" Shane offered as he clapped his hands together.

"Can I just have a water, please?" Michonne asked.

Rick nodded, "Same, please"

"I'm fine, thanks" Carl declined.

"Alright, coming right up"

Rick checked his watch as soon as Shane's back was turned, "One hour. Tops"

Michonne side eyed him.

He sighed as he scanned around the room again. He tensed when he saw Lori, who was sat beside her sister, talking.

"I don't want her near Judith" Rick spoke quietly to Michonne.

Her eyes darted around the room, then stopped, and she groaned.

"So what's been going on with y'all?" Shane returned, holding out the bottles of water to them, "You know what you're having yet?"

"Yeah, little boy" Michonne smiled as she took the bottle from him.

"Oh another boy? Ain't that somethan'" He raised his eyebrows at Carl, "You can teach him a thing or two"

"My life's pretty boring so I doubt it" Carl confessed.

"It's better that way" Michonne added dryly.

"You're fifteen right? How's your life boring? You should be out with your friends! You got a girlfriend?" Shane nudged him.

Carl's face turned the brightest shade of red.

"I take that as a yes" He teased, "Your dad here was about your age when he got his first girlfriend, what was her name?"

Rick groaned.

"Penny, right? Little red headed thang?" Shane grinned, "They were stuck together"

"Aww!", Michonne tilted her head at him, "You and Penny, huh?"

"Stop it, woman" He warmed.

"No" She raised her eyebrow at him.

"So you got a grill going?" Rick asked, changing the direction of the conversation.

"Yeah, y'all can head outside, take a seat"

They filed out to the back yard. Rick was counting down the minutes until they could leave. He felt incredibly awkward being in Shane's home, with Lori not too far away. He wished he'd just feigned illness, but he knew Michonne wouldn't fall for it. She was still angry about him not telling her about the tape, so she was finding new and colourful ways to make him suffer.

"We should probably get a date set soon"

Michonne frowned, her eyes still roaming over the rest of the yard, "Set where? We haven't picked anywhere?"

"I thought we were going with the hotel that Judith had her pageant at?"

"No. You said you wanted to check it out. That's it"

He huffed as he too, looked towards the back of the yard, "Well why not there?"

"No… maybe that nice home on the edge of town? You can rent it out, and it has a beautiful garden"

"And how much is that gonna-"

"Hey there, how are y'all doing?"

They both looked up from their discussion to see Laura, Lori's sister stood next to the table. Rick forced a smile on his face.

"Hey… how are you Laura?"

"I'm good… it's been awhile hasn't it?" The woman smiled nervously.

"Yeah, uh this is my fiancé Michonne, and our son Carl" Rick introduced awkwardly, as Carl had never met his aunt.

"Hello! I'm Lori's sister" She waved.

Michonne gave a strained smile, "Nice to meet you"

"Hey" Carl did the same.

"It's great to finally meet you…" The woman shifted nervously, "I have two sons, their around here somewhere… Tommy's twelve and Jared's ten so they're your… they're… well you know"

Rick couldn't regret coming to the event any more than he did in that moment.

"Oh… cool" Carl nodded.

"Congratulations by the way" She motioned at Michonne.

"Thanks" The smile Rick wore was beginning to hurt.

"No problem… I'll send the boys over to say hello when I find them, so y'all enjoy yourselves"

Rick was so relieved to wave the woman off. While he never had anything against her, it was a strange situation, having his son meet the other side of his family. He had become so accustomed to seeing Michonne's family as the other side that it felt alien to him to talk to Lori's sister.

"Well… that wasn't weird or anything" Carl quipped.

"Oh it was. Very" Rick sighed, "At least you met them?"

"Yeah, I guess"

"Can we leave soon?" Rick hissed at Michonne.

"Yeah mom, please?"

She rolled her eyes at both of them, "We've been here for all of twenty-five minutes"

"It's been longer than that" Rick checked his watch, his eyes bulging when he saw that she was right, "Great"

By the time the food was cooked, Rick didn't want any reason to prolong his stay. He was bored and uncomfortable, and he could see Carl was too. The only person that was enjoying them self was Judith, which was purely because she was playing games with the other kids. Rick envied his daughter's care free spirit.

He was on his way back from the bathroom when he saw Lori crouched down, talking to Judith and Milly. He wasted no time stalking over to them.

"Oh look here's your dad now Judith-"

"Judy sweetie, why don't you go play with Milly outside" Rick smiled down at the two of them.

She nodded and waved goodbye to Lori before they both made their way outside.

Lori stood from her position with a sigh, "I wasn't going to-"

"You don't talk to my daughter" Rick warned calmly, "You keep well away from her"

Lori's head jerked back in shock, "Do you think I'd say something to her?"

"I don't have to give you a reason to stay away from my daughter. I don't want you near her and that's it" He tilted his head at her.

"Do you realise how ridiculous you sound right now? I was just-"

"Remember what I said?"

She crossed her arms, "So if your daughter comes up to me, I'm just meant to ignore her?"

"Do you remember what I said?" He reinforced, his tone stern.

She huffed and shook her head as she stomped away from him. He straightened up, trying to calm himself before going out in the back yard, though his steps faltered when he saw Michonne stood with her arms crossed and eyes narrowed at the sliding doors. He pursed his lips in annoyance as he approached her.

"I just told her to stay away from Judith" He explained, his eyes roaming all over her face.

She stared at him, then let her eyes drop the whole length of him and scraping their way back up to meet his gaze. She let one hand fall to her hip as she spun around, her dreads swinging after her.

It never seemed to amaze him just how much she could communicate to him without saying a word.

…

"How long have they been out there?"

Rick joined Michonne at the kitchen window, both looking out at Daryl and Sasha, who were appeared to be having an argument.

Michonne glanced at him from the corner of her eye, "I don't know".

He glanced at her in a similar fashion, knowing she was still annoyed with him for, what was coming to be, a number of reasons, "You still mad at me?"

"Yes."

"I said I'm sorry-"

"You said sorry for not telling me about the tape, and don't worry, you bought me a lovely new purse to make it up to me and I'll adore it when it arrives tomorrow…"

He stared at the side of her face.

"But you know that I know that you're keeping something else from me and I hope that one of these days you feel comfortable enough to come and tell me what that is…" She turned and faced him, hand on her hip, "...Until then, you better not let me find, discover, locate or detect anything, because I won't be happy and if I'm not happy then you won't be either"

He clenched his jaw as he registered her threat, his eyes slowly trailing down her torso, then stopping at her hand on her hip, causing his brow to furrow, "Where's your ring?"

"Upstairs", She answered nonchalantly.

"Put it on" He demanded, his head tilting a fraction.

She said nothing, though he was certain he could almost read her mind.

"Hey…"

Rick tore his eyes away from Michonne, and tried to straighten himself up as he looked at his two friends.

Daryl cleared his throat, "Yeah, we're gonna get going…"

"Yeah, thank you guys for letting me and Lily stay, it means so much" Sasha smiled.

"Oh, well we were gonna let the girls watch a movie later" Michonne informed, "Why don't you two go home and we'll keep her for tonight, drop her at school tomorrow?"

Daryl looked at Sasha, and they made a quick agreement with their eyes, "Y'all don't mind?"

"No of course not" Rick shook his head at them, "It's fine"

"Alright then, let me go get packed" Sasha stepped past Daryl and headed out the kitchen.

"All good?" Rick asked when she was out of earshot.

Daryl nodded, "Yeah… Merle has to be out by Wednesday the latest"

"We'll work him like a mule tomorrow then"

"You bet. Thanks for watching Lily by the way, we appreciate it"

"Not a problem. I don't think Judith's ready to let her go anyway" Rick smirked.

"I doubt it. Let me go see 'em before we leave"

Rick watched his best friend leave the kitchen, before turning his attentions back to Michonne, who was taking vegetables out the fridge.

"I don't want to see you without your ring on again"

She rolled her eyes as she put the food down on the counter and pulled open the utensil draw.

"I mean it"

She put the knife down hard on the counter and looked at him, "I need to cook, leave the kitchen"

"You hear what I said?" He cocked his head to the side as he stepped closer to her.

"Loud and clear. Now get out"

He pursed his lips in annoyance, not ready to be away from her just yet, "Give me a kiss and I'll be out your way"

He didn't need to look at her hand to know the grip she had on the knife tightened. Without breaking eye contact, he ran his hand and down her forearm and plucked the potential weapon from her hand, chucking it away from them.

"What are you afraid of?"

"You." He raised his eyebrows at her as he pulled her closer to him.

Something about kissing her when she wasn't in the mood always excited Rick. She'd force her tongue in his mouth and bite his lips in a way that could almost make his head spin. He was certain she enjoyed it too, though she pulled away just when his hands slipped from her thicker waist to the top of her thighs, and she waved a dismissive hand at him.

"Now go".

…

"I ain't never known who's been in charge of the guys that sell to me. I just call who I need to call and that's it"

Rick clenched his jaw as he watched Merle from across the table.

"I can't give you all the names though, I still have a habit to feed and all"

"We already went through your phone" Rick added dryly, "We got what we need from it"

Merle's jaw hung, "Can I at least get some time to get somethan' before y'all start going around kicking' in doors and arresting everybody and their mama?"

Daryl growled at him, "You get caught with anythan' and you're going right back jail"

Merle tilted his head at him, "Well then don't look for me and you won't have to catch me!"

"You know Thomas?" Rick sat forward, growing tired of the man's voice.

Merle's head jerked back, "What about him?"

"You know who he works with?"

Merle shrugged, "Nope"

Rick squinted at him, "You sure about that?"

"Look. I already told you, I get what I get and then I go. I don't sit around, waiting to see who else is coming and going"

"How'd you know who Thomas is then?"

Merle's lip curled, "He came out one time when the usual guy didn't show. Only caught his name cause some other guy he was with said it"

"What the other guy look like?" Daryl questioned.

Merle shrugged again, "I dunno, tall, white"

"You didn't catch his name?"

"I can just about remember your name, little brother" Merle answered dryly.

Rick groaned as he stood from his chair.

"We done here? I know y'all gotta get home to your little brown families-"

"Quiet!" Daryl barked at him, before turning to Rick, "We gonna talk to Thomas again?"

"Yeah" Rick sighed, dragging his hand over his face.

"So can I ask you a question?" Merle sat back and crossed his arms as he looked at Rick.

Rick turned his head towards the man, his patience already non-existent, "Merle, I've lost count of the amount of times I've kicked your ass, but I'd love for you to give me another reason to do it again"

Merle shook his head at him, "You and that chocolate woman of yours deserve each other. Both always so mad all the time"

"Rick, can I talk to you a minute?"

He turned back towards the door to face a slightly bothered Shane. Rick gave Daryl a nod before leaving the room. He led the way back to his office, already somewhat aware of what Shane wanted to talk to him about. The other man shut the door once they reached the room, and Rick took and seat behind his desk.

"I spoke to her. She told me everythan'" Shane put both hands at his sides as he looked at him.

Rick stared at him.

"I know we haven't had the best past, and I appreciate what you've done for me, even after what I did to you, but this isn't somethan' for you to do-"

"I already did it" Rick interjected, sitting back in his chair.

Shane's eyebrows rose, "What?"

"I already did it. It's done and that's it"

Shane's eyebrows dropped back down into a frown, "Rick, this ain't your problem-"

"No it's not. It's definitely not, but I was thinking about your daughter and that's it"

Shane rubbed his head as he slowly paced, "Look, I'll be the one-"

"I don't care about any of that. That's somethan' you and her can argue about in your own time" Rick sat forward in his chair, "My condition is this, she doesn't come near my family again, and the only way Michonne hears about this is through me"

Shane stopped pacing, "She doesn't know?"

Rick sat back again, clenching his jaw.

Shane held his hands up in surrender, "Alright fine, I'll make sure"

"Good".


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8:**

 _'I love everything_ '

"How much?!"

Michonne snatched the invoice away from Rick and put it on the other side of her computer.

"Their meant to be painting five rooms, not knocking the house down and rebuilding it from scratch!"

She slid her eyes over to him.

"Daryl and Glenn would have helped me do it for a damn can of beer" He mumbled as he walked over to the fridge, "And don't think I didn't see how much that bag cost either"

Her lip curled in annoyance at the back of his head.

"Where are we even gonna put the stuff for the nursery?"

"Rick, we're going to be redecorating three quarters of the house. Stuff is going to be everywhere"

"The garage is already full-"

She groaned as she felt a familiar surge of impatience rip through her, "You know what? Why don't we just pack up all our stuff and go and stay in a hotel for the next few weeks until the house is done? How about that? Then you won't even have to look at any of it!"

He blinked at her, completely unimpressed with her attitude.

"We can even get separate rooms" She scoffed as she looked back at the screen.

He leaned on the counter, folding his arms, "You'd want separate rooms?"

She ignored him as she began to type.

"What's a half-sister?"

The two looked down at Judith, who had planted herself between them, wearing her bright blue Pyjamas, her eyes darting back and forth.

Michonne frowned down at her, "We're did you hear that honey?"

"Milly" Judith answered, still awaiting an answer to her own question.

"What did Milly say?" Rick picked her up and put her on the counter, as if he were trying to get a better look at her.

"She said I'm Carl's half-sister"

Michonne's eyes nearly bulged out her head.

Rick shifted his stance, "Carl's your brother, you're his sister, that's it, don't worry about anythan' else, okay?"

She nodded, though she still looked confused.

"You want a marshmallow?"

Her eyes lit up, "Yes please!"

Michonne watched Rick give Judith enough Marshmallows to keep her content, before sending her back to the living room. She waited until she was sure her daughter was out of earshot to speak.

"That wasn't Milly talking, that was her damn mother" She hissed, slamming her computer closed.

"I know" Rick was still looking towards the kitchen entrance, "I'll handle it"

"No. I'll take this one" She stood from the stool and gathered her papers.

"You think I won't?" His eyebrows raised as he turned to look at her.

She glanced at him, "You think I shouldn't?"

"I don't want any of you around her-"

"Yeah well, our daughter likes to be around her daughter" She picked up her things and walked past him, "So I'm not having her sending her warped messages through them"

He grabbed her arm, "I'll handle it"

Her eyes examined his, "You feel like telling me what you're hiding from me yet?"

His hold on her loosened for only a second, but his lips were sealed.

She slowly inhaled as she pulled away from him, her patience wearing thin. While she couldn't pinpoint what it was that she thought he was hiding from her, she knew that it had something to do with her son's biological mother, and she never knew how uncomfortable that would make her feel.

She wasn't going to demand for him to talk to her. She had learnt that he was as stubborn as she was determined when it came to vital information. In his mind, he was protecting her in some strange way, but the longer he took to tell her, the more anxious she became, and she hoped for his sake, she didn't find out his secret from anyone else.

…

"We talked, he apologised"

"Oh great" Michonne smiled, but kept her eyes on the letter she was reading.

"He said he didn't know what was wrong with Lori, said she'd been acting strange"

Michonne pulled a face, "Oh I bet she has"

Andrea raised her eyebrows, "What? What did she do?"

She sighed and put the letter down, "She told Milly that Judith's Carl's half-sister"

Andrea's face crumbled in confusion, "What?"

"Judith came and us what a 'half-sister' was"

"No freaking way! What did you tell her?"

"Rick dismissed it, told her they're brother and sister and that's it"

"That evil little troll-"

"What angers me, is that we're going to have that talk with Judith one day when she's older… she knows that I didn't give birth to Carl but I don't think she understands what that truly means right now… but it's the fact that it came across as some kind of insult"

"I understand. I wonder what else she's told Milly" Andrea scowled.

"I better not find out through my daughter"

"Are you gonna talk to her?"

"No. Rick said he would but… I don't know how I feel about that"

Andrea sat forward in her chair, "Why? Rick wouldn't hit her-"

"No of course not" Michonne shook her head, "I've just noticed somethings, when we've all been together…"

Andrea's eyebrows slowly crept back up again.

"She kept stealing little glances at him during the pageant… then at Milly's birthday I saw the two of them talking, and I don't know what he said to her but she marched off"

Andrea's head dropped to the side, "Excuse me?"

"Yeah"

"What do you think's going on? I mean, even I can say I highly doubt there's anything going on there-"

"How do we know that?"

Andrea frowned at her, "Rick is a lot of things, but a cheater? No. You know that's not true. He's obsessed with you. It's actually quite disturbing to watch him drool over you like Homer Simpson does with food-"

"Lori isn't just one of those many ex-girlfriends of his. He loved her once, they were high school sweethearts-"

"I get it but no. You're still wrong. I don't know what it is but I can bet you my left leg it's not that. And we need to find out-"

"No. I do not snoop-"

"You're not snooping. You just have to be more vigilant. Pay attention to how he answers phone calls; if he leaves the room then something's up. Does he have a password on his phone?"

Michonne shook her head, "Nah, he doesn't think of things like that"

Andrea raised her eyebrows at her suggestively.

"I am not-"

"Let me then! I'll search all the way down to the battery!"

Michonne couldn't help but laugh at her friend's eagerness, "I'm so done with you"

"You know I will"

…

"You have to start taking it easy now Michonne, you can't be trying to carry everything"

"Dad, it's one shelf" Michonne chuckled as she carried the medium sized piece of wood, "These look great by the way. They'll go perfectly with the rest of Judith's room"

"Oh good. Hope she likes them"

Her father placed the two other shelves he carried on the tool bench in the garage, then took the one she held to do the same, "It's getting pretty full in here"

"Yeah. Rick likes to remind me" She sighed as she looked around at all the furniture, "Hopefully this won't take too long"

"If they do it right then it shouldn't. I don't even know why you hired someone, I know a few guys that would have done it for a can of beer"

Michonne's eyes slid over to her father, "You been talking to Rick?"

He shrugged, "He makes a good point"

She groaned, "So I've heard"

"I actually wanted to talk to you about something, we'll invite you all to dinner to meet someone"

Michonne frowned at him, "Who?"

He shifted from foot to foot, "A lady friend of mine"

Her heart sank in her chest, "A lady friend?"

He nodded.

She blinked at him, trying to figure out what to say, "Oh okay…"

"I don't know when y'all be free but… when you are, let me know and we can set that up"

She nodded, and tried to smile, though her mind was racing. It hadn't even been a year since her mother's passing and her father was hoping for them to meet a new woman in his life. While she hoped for him to find love again someday, she wasn't expecting it to be so soon.

"That's fine, we can do that…"

"How'd you feel about that?"

She withheld a sigh, "I mean, I'm surprised dad… really surprised but, you're a grown man, I can't tell you how to live your life. I just hope you know what you're doing"

He chose to sigh, "I do. I know it's not been long since your mother, and no one will ever replace her, she took my heart with her when she passed, and I guess, I just miss the company… the companionship"

She nodded as she listened, resting her hand on his arm, "But you don't want just anyone to fill that gap?"

"Oh no… but she, she's helped me a lot, and I appreciate her greatly for that"

Michonne felt for him, though she was still very sceptical about the idea, and she was sure she wouldn't be the only one.

"I spoke to your brother the other day…"

She groaned, crossing her arms as they walked back to his truck.

"He is sorry for what happened with Judith. He didn't mean for her to hurt herself"

"Yeah. I'm sure he is"

Her father sighed, "Jail time is giving him time to think… hopefully he'll come out and stop blaming everyone for everything that goes wrong in his life"

"Not everyone. Me. He blames me for everything that goes wrong in his life" She shook her head at the thought.

"Maybe one day, you two can talk without jumping on each other"

She didn't want to make any promises, "Yeah, maybe"

…

"Happy birthday Mama! I picked it"

"She did. Me and dad didn't even know what we were doing"

Michonne grinned as she took the gift from her daughter, who was sat in front of her on their bed, while Carl was beside her, under the sheets and on his phone. She didn't know where Rick went when the kids poured into the bed, but she could hear him somewhere in the home.

"This is gorgeous!" She smiled as she looked over the structured handbag. "I love it. Thank you, my babies"

"Lauren said happy birthday, mom"

"Tell her I said thank you"

Rick walked in the room with a gift bag. He held it out to her and her eyes lit up. While she knew what it was, she was still very excited.

Judith shuffled closer to her mother, poking her head in the bag. Michonne took out the large gift box and gasped when she saw the Pearls linked together on a white gold chain.

"It's so pretty!" Judith's eyes never left the piece of jewellery, "What are those mama?"

"Those are pearls"

"I like pearls" Judith grinned.

"Don't you start" Rick warned the little girl with raised eyebrows.

She opened the other smaller gift box, and found a matching set of earnings, "Thank you Rick"

"You like them?"

"I love everything"

He leaned down and gave her a quick kiss, much to Carl's displeasure, though his eyes were glued to his phone.

"Gross!"

Michonne wasn't particularly excited about her birthday. She rarely was past the age of twenty five, though she was with her family so she was happy, none the less. She was expecting for them all to go out for a nice lunch, as it was a nice day and she didn't want to be on her feet for too long. She soon discovered Rick had other plans.

"Why are we here?"

He sighed and looked over at her, "They serve nice food-"

"The bar? Really, Rick? You made me put on a nice dress and heels and my new pearls for this? Not everybody drinks at-" She looked at the time on the dashboard, "Two in the afternoon"

He clenched his jaw at her, "Just get out the car, please?"

She glared at him as she did. She was already tired, and she felt exhausted just looking at building. She followed behind Carl and Judith, as Rick led them inside. The bar wasn't too busy, and she was thankful for it.

"Where are you going?" She questioned Rick as he led them up the stairs past the seating area.

"Just walk" He instructed, allowing Carl and Judith to walk ahead of them.

Her glare returned as she climbed the stairs, unaware that they were even allowed to go to the second floor. When they did, she was met with another flight of stairs causing her to groan at Rick. He kept his hand on the small of her back as she marched on.

"There better be a damn five star restaurant up here-"

"Surprise!"

Michonne instinctively grabbed her stomach as she jumped. She looked around at all the familiar faces that stood on the rooftop of the bar, still slightly stunned. It looked beautiful, with white tables and chairs set up, covered by a canopy with little lights draped around it. White flowers lined the railings and a smaller bar was set up at the back. It took her a moment, but she got over the initial shock, she was able to greet her friends and family.

"You guys are great at keeping secrets"

"He bribed me with food" Maggie joked as she gave Cleo a breadstick.

"I helped" Sasha grinned, "I told him we need to go into the party planning business together"

Michonne cackled, "He would have to work on that temper of his first"

"Yeah, he can't fight everyone if things don't go to plan" Andrea smirked as she took a sip of her drink.

"Mimi! Look it!"

Michonne looked down at Ally, to see the little girl was holding out a card to her, her dark hair which was once in a bun, now wild and messy. She took the card and kissed Ally on the forehead, "Thank you, my little gumdrop"

"So wedding planning, where are we with that?" Maggie probed, as she handed a breadstick to Ally before she ran away, "You have a budget yet?"

"No…"

"Yes." Rick answered as he walked past the table, his eyes locked on the bar.

"He does. I don't" Michonne snorted, before leaning back in her chair to call to Rick, "Two drinks only!"

He didn't turn around, just waved his hand over his shoulder as if he was swatting a fly.

"Nice" Andrea smirked, "We need to go dress shopping"

"After he's out. I'm not squeezing in to anything right now"

"Same" Maggie sighed, taking a bite out of her sandwich.

"I can't wait to meet my new little niece and nephew" Sasha cooed as she looked at the protruding stomachs.

"You still don't want anymore?" Maggie enquired.

Sasha's face contorted in horror, "Oh no, I mean, we've talked about adoption but I'm not doing the whole, carry a baby thing again"

"Surrogate?" Andrea suggested.

She shrugged, "It's a possibility"

"Mama! Daddy said we need to give this to you"

Judith appeared beside Lily, and Rick's god daughter held out his car keys. Michonne took them and looked over at Rick, who held up a glass which was filled with a dark brown beverage. She scowled at him while he smiled at her.

She enjoyed her afternoon on the rooftop, despite wondering how Rick always managed to surprise her. It was a bittersweet time for the two of them, as she still had doubts about him in the back of her head. She would always tease him about having little girlfriends, though she was confident he was a faithful man. The truth was, she wanted him all to herself, so naturally, she felt a pang of jealousy whenever there was another female around. Her hormones seemed to magnify the usually dormant insecurity.

"Oh my god mom, why are you crying?"

Michonne turned to Carl, shocked, "Am I? Oh great"

"What's wrong?" He quizzed, concern written all over his face.

"Nothing, I'm just happy" She lied, as she wasn't too sure herself.

"Oh…" He squinted at her, not completely buying her reason, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah" She smiled, dabbing her eyes with a napkin from a nearby table, "Just really happy"

"Good".

Rick appeared beside them, with a little sway to him. Michonne knew he didn't stick to her rule but he wasn't too intoxicated, so she didn't mind, "I wouldn't stick around if I was you, Carl"

Carl's face contorted in disgust, "Gross!"

Michonne tried not to laugh as she watched her son step away hurriedly, "That's another therapy session"

"It's all worth it" Rick grinned, resting his hands on either side of her waist, "You look perfect"

"This is perfect. Thank you" She smiled, her fingers laced behind his neck, "I wish we could stay up here"

"We can, Judith can watch Carl"

She chuckled, "He'd pay her off with marshmallows"

Rick snorted, "It don't take much to buy her lover"

"She likes pearls now"

"She's turning into a mini version of you"

"And Carl's like you"

He rested his hands on her bump, "Wonder what this one's gonna be like?"

"He doesn't do much. He's not a kicker like Judith" She smiled down at her stomach.

"I don't remember Lori complaining with Carl. I think he was pretty relaxed too"

She gazed at him, drowning in his cloudy blue eyes. She did wish she could stay with him in that moment, but dread still clung to her, and she couldn't see past it.

"Tell me"

A few seconds past before he realised what she meant, and his gaze dropped from hers, "Not now"

"Tell me"

One of his hands rubbed her side as he shook his head.

"Did you sleep with her?"

His head snapped up, his eyes darting all over her face as he sobered, "What?"

"Did you?"

"Michonne, don't" She felt the tension in his neck, and saw it rise to his face, "Don't ever ask me that question again, about any woman"

She watched him closely, feeling some form of relief to his reaction, "Then tell me because you're driving me crazy"

Moments passed as she witnessed him fight the internal battle. He finally sighed and shook his head, "She came by the department, asking for help…Shane couldn't help her..."

Michonne didn't move, she just listened intently.

"Her sister lost her job, they can't afford the mortgage, not on her salary so, I gave her some money"

"You gave her some money?" Her brows knitted together.

He nodded, still not refusing to look at her.

"How much?"

He shifted his weight to one foot, still holding her.

"How much of our money did you decide to give to your ex?" The words left her mouth laced with venom.

His eyes were low, on her bump, "I know I'm asking a lot right now but I need you to calm down-"

She didn't blink, "How much?"

His head lifted again, eyes roaming the space above her, "Three thousand dollars"

Her arms dropped to her sides as she stepped back, her mouth agape. Even though her eyes didn't leave him, she couldn't see him anymore. She couldn't see anything in particular, or hear anything either. She felt as if she was on that rooftop all by herself.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9:**

 _'How do I fix this?_ '

"Daddy, I'm hungry"

Rick woke up at his daughter's request, squinting as the room was so bright. He groaned as he rolled on to his back, looking over at Michonne's side of the bed.

"Where's your mama?" He asked Judith as he looked back at her.

"She went outside" Judith answered, swaying side to side.

"In the yard?" He lifted his head slightly.

Her little blue eyes roamed the space around him, "She said she'll be back in a little while"

He frowned, unsure of what to think of that, but still sat up in the bed, "Alright, let's go get you somethan' to eat"

In all honesty he didn't expect Michonne to tell him she was going out. She hadn't said a word to him since her birthday party the previous night, and he knew this was something he couldn't just sweep under the rug. However, he wish she would have at least shouted at him. The fact that she didn't say anything at all made him uncomfortable beyond belief, as that was a sign that she was at her angriest.

By the time afternoon rolled around and she wasn't home, he was beginning to feel uneasy. She would tell one of the kids where she was going if she went out and he figured she didn't tell Judith because he would have gone looking for her. He was prepared to search for her if he had to.

"Hey dad, can I go meet up with Lauren for a little while?" Carl asked as he walked into the living room, his skateboard in his hand.

Rick only caught the tail end of his words as he looked out the window, "Yeah, yeah sure"

Carl narrowed his eyes at him, just as his mother would, "Dad?"

"Yeah, Judy- I mean, Carl?" He shook his head and faced him, "What's wrong?"

Carl stared at him, "I was gonna ask you the same thing?"

He sighed and looked back towards the window, "She didn't tell Judith where she was going"

Carl's eyes darted around the room as he thought, "What did you do?"

Rick refrained from giving his son an unwelcoming look, "Go do whatever it is you wanted to do before I change my mind, son"

Carl quickly spun on his heel and headed towards the door.

Rick rolled his shoulders as he moved away from the window, heading to the stairs, "Judy?! Daddy needs his phone!"

She didn't answer, but he could hear her move around the upper floor before appearing at the top of the stairs. She skipped down them, holding the phone to him.

"Thank you, sweetie"

"Can I watch TV now?" She asked as she reached the bottom step, "You keep walking in front of it, Daddy"

"Yeah, sure honey, sorry about that go ahead" He rested his hand on her back as he led her back to the living room.

He stood scrolling through his phone while she planted herself in front of the screen. He found Michonne's number and called it, slowly beginning to pace from the living room to the hallway, then stopping when he heard ringing coming from the kitchen. He moved the phone from his ear and listened, realising it was her phone he could here.

He stalked into the kitchen and soon spotted it on the counter, just where she'd left it the night before. He snatched it up and was about to look through it, when he remembered she had a password because Judith had racked up a horrible bill on it. He didn't want to risk locking the device, so instead left it, though his mind raced as he wondered why she left it at home, and if she had done so on purpose. His train of thought was broken when he heard someone at the front door, and he left his own phone on the counter.

"Hey, dad"

Rick opened the door to let his father in, who was carrying his large tool box.

"I thought I'd get started on that back porch. The rest of the stuffs in my truck" His father informed as he stopped in the hallway, at the living room entrance.

Rick nodded, knowing that his father meant for him to go and get the other materials. He decided to welcome the distraction for the moment.

…

The sound of the front door closing woke Rick from his sleep. He dragged his hand over his face in a bid to wake himself quicker as he sat up, listening to the footsteps head towards the kitchen. He followed after her.

Michonne was opening the fridge, taking out a bottle of water when he walked in. She had left a few bags by the counter as she did, and Rick's eyes examined the scene.

"Where were you?" He made sure to keep his tone neutral, though he was feeling the complete opposite.

She didn't say anything, just leaned on the counter drinking her water.

He realised she was ignoring him, but he was in no mood for that, so decided to place himself right in front of her, "Don't play with me Michonne, where the hell were you?"

She finally looked at him, and a part of him almost wished she didn't, as she gave him the most displeased look.

"You didn't wanna tell anybody where you was? You left your phone at home so nobody can get a hold of you?" He stepped closer to her with his hands at his sides, "Look, I get it, I screwed up, and you can be mad at me all you want, you have more than a right to be, but you don't disappear all day without warning like that"

She glared at him as she tried to turn away, but he grabbed her wrist. The movement wasn't new, he had often done that in the past as a way of stopping her from walking away too soon, but the way she glowered at him with anger and disgust before snatching her hand away from him, was new.

He frowned at her, tilting his head as he tried to read her, "What the hell was that?"

"Don't, touch me" She breathed out, her eyes flashing with rage.

His eyebrows shot up, "What?"

"You heard me-"

"Don't touch you?" He squinted, stepping directly in front of her, "You don't want me to touch you?"

The expression was cemented on her face.

"You're my wife?"

"No, I'm not" She countered, stepping back from him.

Rick felt a tightness in his chest as his eyes shot down to her finger and saw she wasn't wearing her engagement ring, "What the fuck is going on right now Michonne?"

She bent down to the best of her ability and picked up her shopping bags, "I'm tired and I want to go to sleep-"

"No, we need to talk-", He held her arm again out of habit and it almost broke his heart when she snatched away from him again.

"Don't!" She barked at him, stepping back from him again.

He looked at her with pure disbelief as he clenched his jaw and repositioned himself, both hands at his sides again, "How do I fix this?"

She narrowed her eyes at him, "How do you fix this?"

"Yes. I did this, I messed up, so how do I fix this?"

"I honestly wish it was as simple as you make it out to be" She smirked, "You take our money, our money, and you give it to the woman that abandoned my son, the woman who came back and still claimed to be his mother despite everything, the same woman who was passing her sick little message to my daughter-"

"I wasn't thinking about her! I was thinking about their daughter! If she ended up homeless and I was in a position to help but didn't, I'd feel like a complete asshole-"

"Shane?"

"I know how much he earns, he wouldn't have been able to come up with it quick enough-"

"If that's the case then why the hell didn't you talk to me about it first?" She put the bags down again and folded her arms.

"Because I didn't want to bother you with it! I knew I can handle it-"

"That's the problem right there. You have it in your head that you're superior to me and I'm incapable of making any decisions-"

"What?" He squinted at her, "Superior?"

"You fucking heard me" She growled at him, "You think your opinion is the only one that matters around here and that's why you don't feel the need to tell me anything-"

"Michonne" He warned, "You're taking this somewhere that it doesn't belong. It wasn't anythan' like that at all-"

"You still love her don't you?"

His eyes darted up to the ceiling as he felt rage shoot through him. He inhaled slowly and looked back at her, his voice almost sinister, "I don't wanna hear those words come out of your mouth again"

"You won't hear anything directed at you come out of my mouth again" She snatched her bags by the handles and turned to leave.

He pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed, "We can't leave it like this, Michonne"

She didn't look back or say another word. Rick dragged his hand down his face and groaned in the empty kitchen, his mind racing as he tried to figure out how he could mend the situation.

…

"Hey, just came to drop this by"

Shane walked into Rick's office with a brown envelope and handed it to him. He pulled open the seal and was surprised to see a wad of fifty dollar notes.

"There's five hundred there, it's just somethan' for now-"

"Yeah, thanks" Rick sighed as he chucked the envelope down.

Shane watched him for a few moments before asking quietly, "She found out didn't she?"

Rick's eyes darted up to him from under his furrowed brow.

"I know that look, I worn it a few times myself. When a man's in trouble at home, it's written all over his damn face" Shane rubbed the back of his neck, "You want me to talk to-"

"No" Rick forced dryly.

"Alright" Shane gave him a single nod before turning on his heel and walking out the office.

Rick sat up and was going to attempt to go through a few police reports, when his phone rang on his desk.

"Dale?" He questioned as he answered it.

"Hey there Rick, sorry to bother you at work but we have a little problem with your last payment"

Rick frowned, watching Daryl as he walked in the room, "What?"

"It hasn't gone through"

"Uh… hold on Dale let me check that out and give you a call back" Rick quickly brought up his Web browser on his computer.

"Alright then"

He hung up and began clicking around wildly on the computer.

"They arrested a guy over in the next town" Daryl informed as he went through some papers in his hand, "Thomas said-"

"What the hell?" Rick leaned forward and squinted at the screen, his pupils darting like pin balls as he read all recent transactions, "She cleared the account"

Daryl too squinted, "Huh?"

"She cleared the account" Rick groaned as he shoved the mouse away from him, "The joint checking account. She emptied it"

Daryl frowned at him, "Chonne? Why?"

He dragged his hands over his face, "She found out about Lori and the money"

"Oh" Daryl's eyes slowly widened, "Oh!"

"Yeah" Rick breathed, raking his fingers through his hair.

"Shit. Well. What are you gonna do?"

Rick winced, "I honestly don't think I should do anythan' right now because she's mad. She's really mad. She don't want me to talk to her or even touch her. There was enough space between us in the bed last night to park a damn car"

Daryl grimaced, "Maybe send her somewhere, let her calm down. One of them fancy spa's"

Rick shook his head, "Nah, I don't need her to have any more time alone to decide if she wants to leave me or kill me"

Daryl snickered, "She's pregnant and all so she's probably working herself up about it, just give her some space to cool down"

Rick sighed and shrugged, "Yeah"

"...I told you not to do it-"

"Alright"

…

"Daddy!"

Rick smiled tiredly at his daughter as he gave her a kiss on her forehead, "Hey sweetie"

"I was talking to my baby brother"

"Oh really? What was you saying to him?"

"I told him that I'll look after him and he can have sleepovers in my room"

"Oh ain't that nice of you" He chuckled as he hung up his windbreaker.

"Yeah… Yeah…" Carl came down the stairs with his phone attached to his ear. He gave his father a half-hearted wave and walked to the kitchen.

Rick sighed, "Where's your mama?"

"In her bedroom" Judith answered as she skipped behind Carl.

Rick watched both his kids disappear before heading up the stairs. He heard movement in the baby's room and paused, listening to what was going on. After waiting a few moments, he cautiously approached the door and knocked softly.

Michonne opened the door with a hand on her hip, her eyes already showing how uninterested she was in seeing him.

He winced, "What are you doing?"

She stared at him, making no attempt to answer.

He closed his eyes, dropping his head as he sighed, "You cleared the account?"

She crossed her arms, "I put it somewhere safe"

He groaned, "Michonne-"

"I needed to make sure my kids won't go without the next time you decide to throw money away"

He lifted his head to look at her, but his eyes darted to behind her and he noticed her pregnancy pillow on the bed. He tilted his head at her, "What are you doing?"

"I don't want to share a bed with you" She answered coldly.

His eyes snapped shut and he shook his head, scratching his brow with his thumb, "How's that meant to work when they're gonna start painting this week? This is the first room getting worked on-"

"Judith can sleep with you and I'll take her bed" She shrugged.

He frowned at her, "You wanna do all that just so you don't have to share a bed with me?"

"You don't want to know what I'm willing to do to not share anything with you right now", She stepped back and slammed the bedroom door.

A whole range of emotions crashed into Rick as he stood there, and as usual, the first one he reached for was anger. He stomped to his bedroom and all but ripped away his work clothes.

He was more angry with himself than anything else. He wished he'd done things differently so they wouldn't be in the predicament they were in. It pained him to not be able to touch her or to lay beside her, especially since she was in the later part of her pregnancy. What made it all worse was that he couldn't do anything about it. He just had to wait until she forgave him, and he didn't have the faintest clue how long that would take.

…

"They transferred him over here this morning. Seems like a real charming son of a bitch too"

Rick handed the file back to Leon after flicking through it. The two men walked along the hallway of the police department, until they reached the small waiting room, where Daryl stood waiting for him.

The three men walked into the room, where the man in question was sat in a chair on the other side of the table, with a large smile on his face. Rick was already in a bad mood, and found that something about the suspected drug dealer made it worse.

He sat down in front of the man, on the other side of the table and sighed as he crossed his arms, "Negan, right?"

"That's me" The man's voice was deep and smooth.

Rick scowled at him, "We hear you have a pretty good opposition going on around here?"

Negan raised his eyebrows at him, "Oh is that right? Well it's a shame I can't talk about it until I get an attorney"

"The state will appoint you one-"

"I'd prefer to pick my own, I'm sure I can afford any little lawyer you got out here"

"All access to your accounts have been frozen-"

"My wife and my girlfriend will pay for it"

Rick snarled at the man, before standing from his seat.

"I never got your name, sheriff?"

Rick rested both hands on the table as he leaned forward, "You'll find out soon enough"

Negan smirked at him, "I have a feeling we're gonna get along just great"

"You do as I say and we will" Rick nodded in agreement, "And if not… well you'll find that out soon enough too"

Negan gave him a mocking smile before Rick turned and left the room, a small part of him wishing the other man gave him an excuse to hit him.

He and Daryl were walking back towards their offices when their phones both chimed. Rick took his out first and smiled at the message.

"Maggie gave birth last night"

"Really?" Daryl's eyebrows raised, "Nice. What's her name again?"

"Demi? I think that's what Michonne said anyhow" Rick squinted as he tried to remember, "We'll drop by after work"

"Should probably get her somethan' first. I think Sasha got her a little outfit"

"How's thangs with Sasha now?"

Daryl smirked as he threw himself down in the chair, "She's not cussin' me out anymore if that's what you're asking"

Rick smiled as he took a seat, about to go through mail that was left on his desk when his phone rang. He huffed when he saw Andrea's name on the screen.

"Yeah?"

"You need to get to the hospital" Andrea spoke hurriedly. He could hear Michonne in the back ground crying out in what he recognised as pain.

Rick quickly stood and walked around his desk, "What happened?"

"I don't know she's bleeding- we're almost there"

"I'll be there" He hung up and shouted back to Daryl, "I gotta go-"

"What is it?" Daryl questioned as he sprinted beside him, calling out to another office by the front desk, "Aye! Tell Leon we left!"

"Michonne's going to the hospital"

"Alright let's go".


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10:**

 _'Don't you want to fix this?'_

"He's beautiful. He's looks more like Carl did as a baby.. but with Judith's hair... His hands and feet are tiny, so tiny… his head is like the size of a tennis ball… I don't think I've ever seen or held a baby that small before…"

He sat forward in his seat, his elbows resting on his knees.

"When I looked at him I just felt so much… so much regret because I haven't been there for you the way I should have... but I just, I didn't trust the situation. It felt like every time I wanted a child, I was sacrificing somethan' else without realising and I was scared. I didn't want everythan' to go to hell again, I just wanted my family to be whole once more and I thought a baby so soon would destroy it all... But despite all that, you still looked at me when I couldn't look at all of you. You were so damn patient with me and you gave me time to adjust, then you welcomed me with open arms when I finally did and you, you don't know how much you mean to me…"

Rick sniffed as he ran his hand over his face, wiping his tears away.

"I should have looked after you from day one… and I'm sorry that I didn't... I'm sorry that I didn't hold you and him as a priority… I'm sorry that I've given you nothing but stress this whole time… and I'm sorry that we didn't get to name him…"

Michonne stared at the wall in front of her, only half listening to him, her palm wet from his tears.

"I'm gonna take care of you. Whether you want me to or not, I'm gonna be there, because I don't belong anywhere else but by your side…"

She closed her eyes, no longer interested in his words. She wished she had the strength to pull her hand away from him but she couldn't. As heartbroken as she was, she couldn't push him away any further. Instead she just laid there, waiting for him to let go on his own accord.

It wasn't that she blamed him for their son's stillbirth. Far from it. That was something that was beyond both of their control.

She was at a crossroads in her mind when it came to Rick. As much as she loved him, she couldn't stand how he treated her opinion as if it nothing. The fact that he could give such a fairly large sum to Lori and keep it from her broke her trust in him. She would have never expected him to do something of that magnitude without her input. Needless to say, she was hurt.

Now she had a whole new level of heartache to deal with, she didn't care to fix their problems for the time being. She just wanted to be able to mourn her son in peace, away from the sympathetic looks and the attempts at comforting strokes. She knew everyone around her wanted to help and support them both, which she did appreciate and would later express, but for the moment, she was crushed and no one, not even Rick, could help that.

She didn't know how much time had passed but he let go of her hand, and she finally fell asleep.

…

"Hey, mom, look what grandma gave me"

Carl came and joined her in the bed, holding out a Polaroid picture. She took a look at it and smiled, "My little Carly"

Carl smirked, "How old was I?"

"You were…" She winced as she tried to remember, "Three actually. I think your dad and I had only been together for like a month when it was taken"

"Really?" Carl raised his eyebrow at her.

"Yeah" She adored the image of a young Carl.

"How did you two meet again?"

She sighed, with a ghost of a smile on her face, "They got our orders mixed up at the diner but our booths where right next to each other so we swamped them… well he gave me mine and I spilt his on his lap"

Carl chuckled, "That's it!. I remember he said you were blinded by his beauty"

She almost laughed, "Yeah, he wish"

Carl sighed and gazed around the room, his smile slowly fading, "...Are you guys breaking up again?"

She followed his line of sight, "We're just having a tough time at the moment…"

He frowned at nothing in particular, "Because of the baby?"

She shook her head, "Not entirely, no"

"I haven't see you guys talk…"

"Yeah" She brushed her fingers through his hair, "Sometimes it helps not to talk. Gives you time to think, so you're not as angry when you do finally do speak"

"I get it…" He gave a slow, understanding nod.

"How are you feeling? About… everything?"

He tensed up, "I don't know… it doesn't feel real… I keep thinking you're still pregnant…"

She released a sad sigh, "Yeah"

He shook his head as if he was clearing his mind, "Grandma cooked, should I bring something up?"

She too, shook her head, "Nah, I'll come down in a little while"

"Alright" He swung his legs off the bed.

She watched him leave the room before sitting back against the headboard, still looking at the picture of him. The tightness in her chest had yet to relieve itself, so she intended to stay in her bed until it did.

The sound of heavy footsteps ascending the stairs broke her train of thought. She knew it was Rick. She didn't know how long she was daydreaming for but it was darker outside. He walked along the landing before appearing at the door, and she kept her eyes on the Polaroid in her hand.

He stepped in and put down a bottle of water and some Advil on the table as he had done every day since she left the hospital. He slid a plate of greens and chicken on it beside the water before straightening up.

"You have a check up on Wednesday"

She slid her eyes to from the picture to the nightstand.

He took one last look at her before turning and leaving the room. Her eyes rolled shut and her head fell back against the headboard again.

…

"Hey, when did you get out here? I thought you were in the bathroom"

Michonne turned her head towards Sasha, though she didn't look at her, "Needed some air"

"Yeah, it gets a little stuffy in there" Sasha sighed as she sat on the porch steps beside her, "Daryl took the girls to the park... I think Rick went with them"

She gave a little nod, "Alright"

Sasha looked out at the street, "How are you feeling?"

Michonne shrugged, "I don't really know anymore…"

Sasha nodded.

"...Is that how you felt?"

She stopped nodding, "Pretty much. I mean, it was in the early days so… I didn't have surgery or anything… but I just felt, empty"

Michonne huffed, "That's the word. Empty"

"...I used to stay up wondering what I did wrong… I went over every reason for it a thousand times… but then Lily came and I just, I stopped torturing myself… these things happen you know? There isn't always solid answer for it… and even if you can get a solid answer, it won't bring back what you lost, so you just have to learn to accept it, and it won't hurt so much when you do…"

Michonne whipped the rogue tear that fell from the corner of her eye.

"Rick told me he was beautiful…"

She nodded as she sniffed, "He was. He was just, precious"

Sasha rested her hand on her back and rubbed gently, "You won't ever forget that"

"I won't" She reinforced.

"Exactly… and Rick won't either"

She tensed at her friend's insinuation, "I know"

Sasha sighed as she turned her attentions back to the street.

Michonne broke apart a tiny shred of wood she peeled off the step, "How's Maggie?"

Sasha's eyes locked on something in the distance, "She… had the baby"

Michonne nodded, "No problems?"

Sasha shook her head, "No… they're at home now"

"Great" It was a bittersweet moment, but she was truly happy for her friend, "That's great"

"She wants to come and see you…"

Michonne shook her head, "No. She should be home with… Demi"

Sasha's eyes began to roam again, "Yeah"

They sat in and comfortable silence for a few moments. Both aimlessly looking around the neighbourhood while they let their thoughts consume them.

"You hungry?"

Michonne shook her head, "Not right now… probably later"

"...Mrs Grimes thinks you're too thin"

Michonne's eyes almost lit up, "She's been telling me that for years"

"Well at least we know who to save first if there was ever a zombie apocalypse"

Michonne frowned at her friend.

"It's true, that woman can cook up any and everything from scratch"

"That's true" She smirked.

Sasha's brow furrowed at she thought, "I think Rick would survive the longest"

She raised her eyebrow as she considered the theory, "Yeah… he'd thrive in that kind of world"

"He's got the attitude… don't tell Daryl I told you that by the way"

A small smile tugged on her lips, "I won't "

…

"How are you doing honey?"

Michonne watched her father join her on the couch, "A little better…"

He rested his hand at the base of her neck, "I'm glad to hear that"

"How are you?" She queried, hoping to shift the topic.

"I'm alright… sorry I haven't been around as much as I could, the damn basement flooded and it's been nothing but a pain"

Her eyebrows rose a fraction, "When did that happen?"

"About a week ago now… some of your mother's stuff was down there and it… I mean most of it was saved but still"

She sighed as she rested her hand on his, "Sorry, dad"

He nodded and looked down at her hand, he stopped nodding and began to frown, "Where's your ring?"

She huffed as she moved her hand away, "Upstairs"

He studied the side of her face, "What happened?"

She shook her head, "Nothing, I just didn't feel like wearing it today"

His frown stayed put.

"You just miss Susan…" She hurriedly changed the conversation.

He softened, "I need to thank her for being over here, and William"

"They're been a great help… especially with the kids…"

"Carl?"

It was her turn to frown, "He's accepting it…"

"Judy?"

"She's… confused but, we expect that"

He nodded, showing his understanding, "What about Rick?"

She almost squirmed in her seat, "He's coping, I guess"

"You guess?"

"Hey grandpa"

Carl walked in to the room with a warm smile as he headed over to the older man and gave him a hug. Michonne was grateful for another distraction, as she knew she wouldn't be able to skate around the subject of Rick forever.

"How are you doing son?"

Carl shrugged half-heartedly, "I'm good, thanks"

"You're on summer vacation now, right?"

"Yep" Carl sat down on the recliner.

"I can take the two of you out fishing soon then"

The teenager grimaced.

"Don't make that face, it'll be fun" His grandfather encouraged.

Carl wasn't sold.

The older man gave Carl a look that Michonne recognised from her childhood, that seemed to communicate that there was no room for argument.

Carl released a defeated sigh, "Fine. I'll give it a go"

His grandfather smiled, "That's the spirit. We can bring dinner home, and it's quite a satisfying feeling to do that"

The teenager gave an unenthusiastic nod. Michonne tore her eyes away from him when she heard the front door open. Judith came barrelling in the room, dragging a glittery skipping rope, while Rick followed shortly after, holding a large white paper bag that obviously had food init.

"Hi grandpa" She smiled as she climbed on his lap.

"Hey there sweetie, where were you?"

"Me and daddy went to get lunch… then we got ice cream" She turned to face her brother, "I tried to save you some of my sundae Carl, but I ate it all"

Carl chuckled at her, "It's alright, Judy"

She turned back to her grandfather with a clear conscience, "It was great"

"Is that dinner?" Carl asked his father as he sat up in the chair.

Rick held the bags out in front of him, and Carl all but snatched them and ran to the kitchen. Rick smirked as he watched him disappear, before stepping further in to the room.

"How are you doing sir?" He asked her father as he took Carl's seat.

"I'm doing fine… How about yourself?"

He sent a single nod to the man, "Good"

Her father's eyes slowly rolled back and forth between Michonne and Rick, his expression not a pleased one. Michonne slowly stood up, stroking a hand over Judith's hair as she passed the little girl.

"I'm gonna lay down for a little bit, dad" She announced.

"Sure, go ahead honey"

Rick turned his head towards her, but kept his eyes low, "I'll bring you somethan' up in a little while"

She didn't give him any kind of inkling that she heard him. She just continued at her slow pace into the hallway and up the stairs.

…

Michonne sat watching a couple carry their new-born through the parking lot. She didn't want to look at the little family but she couldn't take her eyes off them. She didn't envy them, though she wished she had been as fortunate. As the weeks rolled on, Sasha's words began to fall into place. It wasn't hurting as much to think about, but it was still a substantially painful thought.

"Ready?"

Rick appeared in front of her, his eyes examining her from above. He looked towards the distance to see what she was peering at, and he quickly looked away. She rose the bench and they walked over to his truck, him following behind her.

"We need to talk, Michonne"

She wondered why he hadn't started the car once they had gotten in, but she wasn't expecting for him to want to talk in that moment. She stared out the windshield at the hospital in front of them, still uninterested in his words.

"I told you I'd take care of you, and I meant it, and I won't stop taking care of you … but this is… I feel like I've lost you and my child..."

Her eyes travelled across the windows of the building as she refused to connect with him.

"You hardly even look at me… And I know you still don't want me to touch you because I feel it, you stiffen up… you might as well pull away from me sometimes... and it's all tearing me to shreds because we're not going through this together, and we're meant to deal with this together-"

"Why now?"

He paused, shocked she was choosing to speak to him, "What do you mean why now? We've lost our child-"

"But that's not the reason we're not close right now. You weren't interested in us dealing with things together before then, so why now?"

He clenched his jaw, looking out the window beside her, "What do you want, Michonne?"

She snapped her eyes shut and shook her head.

"Tell me what it is you want-"

"You can't give me what I want-"

"Tell me-"

"No!" She yelled, eyes glistening with tears, "You can't give me anything because all I want is the ability to go back and make him my first priority instead of you! Maybe if I didn't put you first then he'd still be here and you will never even begin to understand the guilt I feel for that!"

If she wasn't so angry, she would have quickly registered the hurt in his eyes, but she was too busy pouring her grief in to his lap.

"Carl told me that he keeps thinking I'm still pregnant and I wish, I wish I felt the same, but I still remember how he was wrapped from my stomach and I'll always have the scar as a reminder" She dragged her hand over her face, in an attempt to calm herself, "And I wish this was something we handled together, but you've gotten to decide what you want to handle alone and I've decided I want to handle this alone"

He was still, his eyes on the side of her face as he tried to gather his thoughts, while she resumed her previous position, sitting back and looking at the hospital.

"If I knew this is where we'd end up, I'd never have done it. I could tell you how sorry I am until I'm blue in the face-"

"I know you're sorry. I know you are" She breathed, running her hand down the side of her face.

"Can we fix this?" He finally asked after a moment of silence.

She wanted to sigh. The sound of his voice infuriated her and broke her at the same time. She couldn't bring herself to look at him again, "I don't know"

His lips pursed as he prepared his next question, "Do you want to fix this?"

She sighed, her interest in the conversation depleting, "I don't think so"

He was still for a few more moments, before finally starting the car. She couldn't help but be brutally honest with him, though she hoped he would wait for them to have that discussion. She didn't wish to diminish how he felt about their loss, but they weren't in the same place they were in the weeks before and she wasn't in any position to tell him what he wanted to hear.

They drove home in silence and she was grateful for it.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11:**

 _'What's the point?"_

Rick eyes traced over every panel of the ceiling in his office. He thought going back to work would somehow help his current situation at home but he was just as distracted. His couldn't focus on anything, he just sat back in his chair with his head back, going over everything that had happened in the last few weeks.

"You could have taken some more time off you know"

His gaze dropped to Daryl, who was sat in the chair opposite his desk, hands filled with papers, "Nah".

His best friend shifted in his chair, "That bad?"

Rick's lip nearly curled, "Probably the worst it's ever been"

Daryl slowly nodded, as if he understood the depth of his words.

Leon appeared at the door, tapping on the frame, "Grimes, Morgan's here for that narcotics case"

Rick didn't take his eyes off the ceiling, "Tell him to come over"

"Alright", Leon disappeared down the hall, only to be replaced by Rosita, who walked in carrying two files under her arm.

"Aren't you guys overseeing Negan's talk with his attorney?" She looked between the two of them, clueless.

Rick's face almost darkened, "No. Eric can handle it"

"Oh, trouble in paradise?"

Rick and Daryl both frowned as they looked at her.

She shrugged, "I thought you'd want to watch him around your lady"

Rick's frown intensified as he struggled to understand what the younger woman meant.

She huffed and rolled your eyes, "Your fiancée, she's his attorney right? I thought you-"

"What?" He leaned forward in his chair.

Rosita looked as confused as they previously had been, "She's his attorney. I saw her sign in with that other guy-"

Rick rose from his seat and marched out of his office. Daryl was hot on his heels as he made his way to the meeting rooms. Eric was indeed, standing outside one of them, but took a step out the way when he saw him approaching.

Michonne was sat reading something aloud when the door flew open. Rick instantly thought she looked sinless. He doubted that anyone would have believed what had happened to her not that long ago. Her eyes rolled of the paper in front of her and up to him, and she quirked an eyebrow at him.

"What the hell is going-" Negan began.

"Shut up" Rick ordered, his eyes still locked on Michonne's. He raised his eyebrows at her, "Can I have a word, please?"

She stared back at him for a moment, before slipping the piece of paper on to the desk. She slowly stood from her chair and made her way out the room. Daryl stayed in the room while Rick followed her out.

"Go" Rick instructed to Eric as he closed the door behind him. The younger male did as he was told, while Rick looked Michonne from head to toe, "You wanna explain this to me?"

She crossed her arms.

"You didn't wanna tell me you were going back to work?" He tilted his head at her.

She rolled her eyes at him dismissively, "What difference does it make-"

"You had surgery, what, three weeks ago? I had to help you out the car yesterday, you still can't even stand up straight, and you thought it be a good idea to go into work?"

She pursed her lips at him, "I did".

He stared at her disbelievingly, "You lost our-"

"Don't!" She snapped, "If I don't want to stay trapped at home long then that's my prerogative-"

"You don't have to sit at home all day but if you could barely walk two weeks ago then why the hell-"

"I'm fine" She almost growled, "And if I'm not, then I'll handle it"

He clenched his jaw as he studied her, "Are you trying to say somethan' else to me?"

Her shoulders rolled back a fraction. He noticed she wasn't standing up completely straight as she usually did, and knew she was probably still uncomfortable, but she would never admit that to him now, "I've said all I've needed to say to you"

He watched her with angry eyes, feeling defeated. He dropped his head and stepped aside, allowing her to walk back in the room.

"I better get extra time, seen as you interrupted us Sheriff" Negan raised his eyebrows at him, "I know she's a one hell of a view but that doesn't-"

"What did you just say?" Rick stalked over to him, resting his hand on the table in front of him.

Negan winced at Rick, before sliding his eyes over to Michonne, a wicked smile dancing on his lips, "Ah…"

"I'm glad you realised all by yourself, so I'd watch your mouth if I was you"

Negan smirked at him, "So that's the button to push?"

Rick cocked his head at him, "There are no buttons, I'm always ready"

Negan chuckled sinisterly, "Oh, sheriff. You truly are fascinating"

"And you're a piece of shit" He straightened up and turned around.

To say he was angry would be an understatement. He wanted to have patience with Michonne but he also desperately wanted her back at his side. He was in a constant state of guilt and hurt, and he needed her more than ever, yet it was ripping him to shreds to know that she didn't even want him at this time. She didn't want his comfort or his support and it left him feeling helpless.

…

Rick hung his windbreaker up on the hook by the front door. He frowned as he walked the living room entrance and saw Judith laying on the couch watching TV. She was usually right at the front door when he got home, and he was shocked to see her preoccupied with something else.

"Hey sweetie" He greeted.

She looked up at him with sickly eyes, "Hi dad-"

Her sentence was cut short as a stream of vomit flew from her mouth and on to the floor. Rick quickly sat her up and leaned her forward, as it was too late to fetch something for her to throw up in, so he left her to puke on the floor.

"Carl!" He called over his shoulder.

He heard footsteps approaching but knew it wasn't his teenage sons. Michonne came around the corner, surveyed the scene before turning back around and heading to the kitchen. Carl's heavier footsteps came barrelling down the stairs. He walked into the room and grimaced.

"She threw up again?" He asked as he walked around the back of the chair.

"Again?" Rick looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, she threw up in the car…"

When Rick realised she was done emptying the contents of her stomach, he pulled her soiled top over her head and handed it to Carl. Michonne reappeared with cleaning supplies and paper towels.

"Probably a stomach bug" Michonne mumbled as she walked over to the mess.

Rick scooped Judith up and carried her out the room, "How are you feeling sweetie?"

"My tummy hurts" She answered weekly.

"Yeah, I bet it does" He sighed as he ascended the stairs.

Once he cleaned Judith up and put her in bed with a bucket to throw up in, just in case, he headed to their bedroom to change out of his uniform. Michonne was laying on the bed when he walked in, and it took all he had to carry on as normal.

"If she's still sick tomorrow then she can't go to school" He announced as he took off his shirt, looking over his shoulder at her.

She slowly inhaled, as if she was going to say something, but she didn't.

"One of us is gonna have to stay home either her?"

She sat up on the bed, looking elsewhere, "Guess it's me right?"

He bit the inside of his cheek as he unfastened his belt, "I think you should still be resting"

She shook her head as if she was exhausted with the topic, "Yeah"

His whole body tensed. Her dismissive attitude towards him was grating, he felt as if he was talking to a brick wall. He changed in silence, pausing when he noticed her engagement ring still sat on the dresser. He tried to avoid looking at it whenever he came in the room, but the foolish side of him would often hope he wouldn't see it.

He walked to the bedroom door just as she was getting under the sheets. He snuck a glance at her before leaving, heading to, what would have been the baby's room. A small part of him was glad they didn't get around to decorating it, as he wouldn't have been able to step foot in it otherwise, and he knew Michonne wouldn't either.

…

"That's another five hundred there"

Rick took the brown envelope from Shane and threw it down on his desk, "Thanks"

"No problem…" Shane rubbed the back of his head as he looked around his office, "Listen man, I'm sorry about what happened to y'all… I really am"

Rick stared at him for a few moments before slowly nodding, "Yeah… appreciate that"

"If you don't wanna set anythan' up with the kids for a while then it's fine, I under-"

"Nah, they should still see each other" Rick shook his head as he frowned.

"If you're sure about that, then yeah, just give me a call or somethan' and we'll sort that out…"

Rick was expecting Shane to leave the room but he hung around, shifting from foot to foot. He raised his eyebrows at him, "Somethan' else you wanna say?"

Shane shook his head as if he were battling with his words, "I really don't know how to tell you this, I was hoping to tell you sooner but I heard what happened so I wanted to give y'all time-"

"Spit it out"

Shane sighed, "She lied. About what she needed the money for"

Rick stared turned in to at glare, "What?"

"I seen her sister the other day when I was on my way to get Milly, and she was dressed like she was coming for work, and I asked her where she's working now and she just looked at me like I was crazy…"

Rick leaned forward as he listened.

"...She didn't lose her job, she don't even have a mortgage, she got that house from her husband after their divorce… so I pulled Lori up about it and… long story short, she lives in town now. She used it to move. She has a little apartment over on Richmond Avenue"

Rick could remember only a handful of times in his life when he was absolutely livid. That moment quickly joined the short list.

"I'm sorry man. I am. I should have spoken to her sister before-"

"Where's she working?" Rick questioned as he stood up.

"At that hardware store-"

Rick snatched his keys off his desk and stormed out the room, Shane right behind him.

Daryl came around the corner talking to Eric, but halted the conversation when he saw Rick. He handed Eric the file he was holding and joined Rick as he walked past.

"I got him" He called back to Shane, giving him a single nod.

Shane scowled to a stop but still watched them exit the building.

Rick was sure he was the biggest fool on earth for allowing Lori to manipulate him that way. He chastised himself for not knowing better, and he dreaded what the news would do to Michonne when she found out. He felt as if he was living a nightmare.

By the time they pulled up at the store, he just wanted to lay his eyes on her. He threw open the door, so hard that the glass panel in the centre of it cracked. His eyes scanned the almost empty store for her. It didn't take long, as she was behind the cashier counter, serving an older gentleman. Rick stomped over to her.

Her eyes widened when she saw him, her hand freezing in the air as she waved goodbye to the customer.

"You thought I wouldn't find out about this?" Rick questioned as he rested his hands on the counter top.

She looked from Daryl to him, "I would have told you-"

"You thought you'd use my money to move? You lied to get my money after everythan' you've done-"

"I will pay you back, okay? God. It's not like your hard up for cash if you're buying her diamonds every week-"

"Excuse me?" Rick spat in disgust, "Who the hell are you to decide how much money I can spare? And whatever I buy my wife is none of your business-"

"Oh please! You had your daughter announce it at the pageant!"

Rick squinted at her, his body stiff with anger. He conjured up the more intimidating look he could as he leaned forward, growling at her "You had better stay as far away from my family as possible, or else you won't even be able to step out your house without my say so"

Her head jerked back as she stepped away from the counter, "Are you threatening me?"

"I have never made a threat in my life. I only make promises, and I'm a man of my word"

The colour has drained from her face as she watched him, "I am the mother of your child-"

"The mother of my children is in my home" He straightened up, adjusting his tie.

"She's the mother to one of your children" Lori hissed at him.

His face darkened, his eyes locked on hers. He breathed between gritted teeth, "I'd take a front seat in hell to hear you say that again"

Her mouth fell open.

He tapped the counter as he turned away, "Tell Milly that Judith and Carl hope to see her soon, and don't add anythan' else to that message"

He strolled out the store, feeling considerably better about giving her a warning.

"You think she'll listen?" Daryl questioned as they walked back to the car.

Rick snarled at nothing in particular needs "Honestly? No. I think she'll back off for a little while, but I don't trust her at all"

When he arrived home that evening, he had decided to tell Michonne about Lori. He genuinely didn't want to, as he felt they were already so distant, and he didn't want to add any more space between them.

He waited until they had all finished dinner and she had put Judith in her bed to talk to her. She was sat in the living room, staring at the TV, though Rick doubted that she was actually interested in the show.

He took a seat in the recliner with a sigh, "I need to talk to you about somethan'..."

She raised an eyebrow to signal she was listening, her attention still on the screen.

"...Lori lied about what the money was for. She wanted it so she could move in to town"

Her expression didn't change, but he noticed breathing didn't.

"Shane told me...I went over to the hardware store where she works… told her to stay away-"

"When did you find this out?" She finally asked, her eyes rolling over to him.

"Today" He insisted.

She looked back at the screen, "Surprising"

"I didn't know-"

"No. Of course you didn't. You also didn't ask to see proof? Or check the story out with her sister? Have a written contract on repayments?"

He felt an even bigger fool for not taking in to consideration how much of an asset she was when it came to financial arrangements.

"Yeah… good thing you handled it by yourself though, right?" She smirked, though there was no humour in her tone.

He huffed as he dragged his hand over his face, "She shouldn't be a problem for us anymore"

She didn't attempt to say anything back to him, she just continued to gaze at the TV.

After a few minutes of silence, Rick stood from his seat, with the intention of leaving the room, but he decided he couldn't help himself, "You going back to work tomorrow?"

One of her eyes twitched, as if she heard the question but was either unsure of her answer or unsure of why he asked, "Yes."

His brow furrowed at her, "Why don't you just wait until next week?"

She sighed as she rose from her seat, "I'm going to bed"

He grabbed hold of her wrist as she tried to step past him. He felt her tense, her eyes dropping to his hand, "Is this how it's gonna be from now on? You leave every time I try to talk to you?"

She slowly pulled her hand away from him, "I know what you're going to say, so what's the point?"

"Is that your answer for everythan'? What's the point?", He watched her with an intense gaze, more desperate than he thought to know the answer.

She looked towards the living room entrance, "I guess it is"

His gaze fell down the length of her, "I can't even remember the last time you said my name"

She raised her eyebrows as if she had just realised herself, "Me neither"

He refused to watch her walk away from him. He was beginning to see that she wasn't going to reciprocate his need. She didn't want him the way he wanted her and as much as it pained him, he had to step back. Trying to talk to her or connect with her again was turning out to be nothing but torture, and he didn't need the added stress. As much as he tried to convince himself that they would reconcile, the uncertainty was what drove him ape.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12:**

 _'That somethan' you believe is fair?'_

"You know he has a girlfriend and a wife? I want to know what he's got for them to be okay with that arrangement"

Michonne smirked at Andrea's insinuation.

"I mean I know he's probably a drug lord but… he's kind a hot… and sexy in a dark way… and he had some big feet so-"

"Stop it woman!" Michonne warned with a smile.

"I'm just saying! Take away the drugs; he's hot, he has money and he might have a third leg down there so they're probably both happy to share him. Hell, I think I'd might be able to put up with another female for all that"

Michonne pointed to her office door, "Out!"

"No!" Andrea snuggled back in the chair, "You love me"

"I do, but you're scandalous" She shook her head at her as she sifted through papers, "I'm sure Shane would be glad to hear you talk like that"

She snorted, ready to shoot down the claim but then her eyes widened, "You would never guess who I saw-"

"Lori" Michonne inserted dryly.

"How did you-"

"She lives here now"

Andrea sat forward, a disbelieving look in her face, "What? She moved here?"

"Yep! With our money. She went crying to… you know who and he fell for her bull story hook, line and sinker, so now she lives here"

Andrea's eyes couldn't open any wider, "What?! When the hell did he-"

"Before my birthday…" She sighed.

"That idiot! Has she at least paid you back?"

"Shane has" Michonne shrugged, "Doubt she will"

Andrea shook her head as she sat back in the chair, folding her arms, "So you guys are really…"

"Yeah…"

"Have you talked?"

Michonne's eyes sailed across her desk, "He keeps trying to and I just, I really don't want to. Every time I look at him I just feel so angry… not just at what he did but… just everything"

Andrea gave her a sympathetic look, "You thought about counselling?"

Michonne's eyes darted up to meet hers, "Excuse me?"

"Isn't that the whole point of counsellors? To help mediate-"

"It's not that, it's him. Do you really think he'd want to sit down and talk about it with someone else? As far as he's concerned the only person he needs to talk to is me"

"Yeah but that's not working now is it?" Andrea raised her eyebrows at her.

"He won't do it. I know he won't"

"He probably will if he thinks it will win you back"

Michonne pulled a face as she thought about it, "Maybe"

"Think about it at least"

…

"Daddy!"

Michonne watched Judith jump up from her seat and run over to the front door. She still found it adorable how she would run to the door whenever her father came home. She used to wish she would show her even a slither of that kind of affection but she had come to realise, they had a very special bond.

While she didn't look directly at him, she noticed him stop to look at her on the couch, before heading upstairs to change. She felt relieved, as she would grow uncomfortable around him, unsure of what he would say to her or ask her. She was hopeful that he was finally giving her space.

"Hey mom" Carl walked into the room a short while later, his phone in his hand, "Can we stay here tomorrow?"

Michonne's eyebrows slowly rose to the middle of her forehead.

"I love grandma and all but, you know I can watch Judith and we can just stay home and watch movies and stuff"

"Carl-"

"Just me and Judy. I promise. I'll give her a sandwich and some chips for lunch and just fruits for a snack. You'll be home by four right? So what's the problem?"

She stared at him.

"You know I can do it and you said I have to gain your trust back so what better way than staying home watching my little sister?…"

She continued to stare at him, just as Rick came back down the stairs with Judith on his back.

"Dad!" Carl called to him.

He stepped into living room, "What's wrong?"

"I was just talking to mom and I was suggesting that instead of going to grandma's tomorrow, I stay here and babysit-"

"No" Rick interrupted dryly.

Carl deflated, "Why not?"

"Because I don't like the idea of you home alone" He answered in a matter of fact tone.

"I'll be watching Judith-"

"You put her in front of the TV and she's comatose. So you could go off and do whatever you want-"

"So we're gonna spend all summer at grandma's house?"

"Rather you there than here, alone" Rick shrugged, "Yeah".

Carl looked to Michonne, "Mom, please"

She bit her bottom lip as she thought about it, considering the fact that they did need to learn to trust him again. She looked up at Rick, who raised his eyebrows at her, "We could give it a try"

Rick's face contorted in confusion, "What?"

She sighed, "Carl take your sister, go set the table please"

Carl's eyes darted between the two of them as he stood up, peeling Judith from her father, before leaving the room.

"Do you realise what you're allowing him to do?" Rick asked as he put his hands on his sides.

"We need to give him a chance to prove himself. He made a mistake before-"

"He made it, not once, but three times. Three times he skipped school and there probably would have been a forth if we didn't catch him-"

"How do we know if he's learnt his lesson if we just keep him on lock down forever? We have to give him a chance to show us that he can be responsible"

Rick stared at her with hard eyes, "So what you're saying is, he made as mistake, but we need to forgive him and give him a chance to prove himself?"

She nodded slowly, "Yes".

"That somethan' you believe is fair?"

She squinted at him as she quickly realised what he was hinting at, "We are discussing Carl"

He smirked, shaking his head as he turned and walked out the room. She sat back in the couch feeling annoyed, knowing he had a valid point but she wasn't going to admit that to him. She couldn't help but notice the change in his attitude towards her, and she knew he was getting fed up with their current situation. It only made her want to distance herself from him even more, because whilst they were going through a tough time, their moods were still very much in sync, so if he was getting angry, then so would she.

…

"I'm gonna go and check on them around lunch"

Michonne didn't say anything, she was too engrossed in her paperwork. Rick volunteered to drive her to work, as she wasn't dropping their kids with their grandmother for the day. She couldn't think of an excuse not to so she obliged.

He glanced over at her, his eyes dropping to her papers, before he shook his head, turning his attentions back to the road. The rest of the journey was spent in silence, until they arrived at her building, and saw Shane and Andrea stood outside. Rick groaned. He honked his horn at them as he pulled up, causing Andrea to yelp. Michonne rolled her eyes at him as she put her things away.

"Glenn left me a message, asking if he could drop by later"

She paused for only a moment, "Just him?"

"Yeah…"

She opened the car door, "Fine"

"...We're gonna have to see Maggie eventually"

She snapped her eyes shut as she sighed, "You think I don't know that?"

She knew he probably clenched his jaw at her reply, as he didn't answer her. She stepped out the car and shut the door, almost stomping over to the firm's entrance. Shane and Andrea broke away from each other to greet her.

"How are you doing, Michonne?" Shane gave her a friendly smile.

"Hey! We got work to do so get moving!" Rick shouted from the car.

Shane winced and the other man but still began to move, "I gotta go, y'all have a good day"

"Bye" Michonne made a pathetic attempt at a wave.

"What's wrong with him?" Andrea asked, watching Rick turn out the parking lot in his truck.

Michonne waved her hand dismissively, "He's fine. Come on, let's go"

She buried herself in her files to distract herself from her thoughts of Maggie. She did want to see her friend and their new addition, but she couldn't bear the thought of doing so anytime soon. She believed herself to be fortunate to have not seen any babies in recent weeks. She tried her best to rid her thoughts of her son, not to forget him but in order to function. She didn't know if it was a healthy way to deal with the loss, but it worked for her.

Rick came to collect her at the end of the day and the two stopped at the grocery store for a few stipple items before heading home. Neither said anything to each other as they walked down the aisles, Michonne walking ahead of him. She stopped when she came to array of canned goods, and Rick stopped not far from her, aimlessly looking around.

"...Michonne?"

She turned to the unfamiliar voice, and saw an older brunette woman stood looking nervously at her.

Michonne kept her expression blank as she looked back at the stranger, "Yes?"

"And you must be Rick" Her eyes travelled over to him.

Rick looked just as lost as Michonne, "Have we met before?"

"Oh no, no. I'm… a friend of Donald's… I've seen pictures of you all so I recognised you…"

Michonne stiffened when she realised it was her father's girlfriend. She had completely forgotten that he had wanted them all to meet, and she wasn't expecting to run into the woman in question any time soon.

"Oh, It's nice to meet you" Rick reached out and shook her hand, giving Michonne a moment to recover.

"Pleasure to meet you too. I know Donald wanted us to meet a little more formally but… I understand that you've both haven't been able to…" Her expression was warm as she looked back and forth at them both.

Michonne slowly nodded, surprised to find herself feeling uncomfortable with the situation, "Yeah"

"He always speaks so highly you all! You have a teenager and a little girl… Carl and Judith, right?"

They both nodded.

"That is lovely, I have a few granddaughter myself, teenager. They can be a little bit of a handful at that age"

"Yeah… so we've learned" Rick replied casually.

"Well, whenever you feel up to it, I'd love to have you all around for dinner… just talk to Donald when you're ready and we'll take it from there"

"Yeah sure, that's a great idea" Rick confirmed.

They bid each other farewell, before she headed down the aisle, leaving Michonne still quite speechless.

Rick looked over his shoulder once more, "Your dad's friend?"

Michonne turned her attentions back to the shelves, "Girlfriend"

"Girlfriend?" He frowned, studying the side of her face.

She sighed, biting her lip as she tried to focus on the task at hand.

He quickly gauged her mood and left the topic alone. She didn't think meeting her father's new love interest would make her feel so awkward. She was so used to the image of her mother and father that she couldn't picture either of them being replaced by someone else. Realisation set in that with her mother gone, her father was free to see who he pleased and as much as the thought hurt, she refused to stand in the way of that.

From the moment Rick stepped out of the car, his eyes scanned the house for any signs of wrongdoing. Michonne subtly did the same, hoping Carl had kept to his promise. Once they took the few grocery bags from the trunk, she followed him to the front door.

"Daddy!...and Mama!"

Judith came barrelling towards the door with a large smile, "We played video games! And we watched this film where there was a skeleton and he was trying to turn Halloween into Christmas-"

"Hey! Sweetie, take a breath", Rick chuckled as he smoothed her hair back, "You hyped up on sugar or somethan'?"

"We made cupcakes. She ate nearly half of them", Carl explained as he strolled down the hallway, drying his hands on a cloth, wearing an apron. Rick frowned at the sight of him, while Michonne chuckled.

"You were washing up?", She questioned as she walked towards the kitchen.

"Yep. I made… well I prepared… well I ordered dinner and made it look nice", Carl admitted sheepishly.

"My little chef" She teased as she put the bags down on the kitchen counter, "Go eat then, your done for now"

"Thank god"

…

Michonne sat back on the couch after giving Glenn a hug. It was a second time that day she had felt nervous and it was taking its toll. He took a seat beside her, while Rick sat in the recliner, with Judith on the floor in front of him, on his phone.

"How are they?" Michonne asked.

"Doing great, Patricia and Beth are over there now… trying to help out with the other two", Glenn explained, looking back and forth between them, "She wanted to come with me but Uh…"

"No", Michonne didn't need for it to sound harsh, but she knew it did, "She should be resting".

Rick's eyes met with Michonne's for a second moment, before travelling to Glenn's, "She's right. She should"

Glenn nodded, "Yeah… so… wedding plans? Have you had a chance to…"

"Oh, sorry Glenn, I didn't ask if you wanted anything? A bottle or water or something?" Michonne offered, sitting up straight.

"Oh, uh, yeah sure please, a bottle water is fine"

"I'll get that for you" She stood up and walked out the room, ignoring the knowing look from Rick.

She didn't want to discuss the wedding. She didn't want to think about it in its in entirety. Her ring sat on her dresser since her birthday, and she had no intentions of putting it on any time soon.

She walked in to the kitchen, just as Carl was helping himself to one of the cupcakes he and Judith made.

"I don't want to brag but, these are amazing" Carl grinned as he took a bite.

"Yeah, your sister's only just coming down from her high" Michonne shook her head as she opened the fridge, "I'll try one in a little while"

"You need to hurry. I know Glenn loves cakes"

"He does, but I'll fight him off when the time comes" She smirked.

Carl slowly stopped chewing and looked towards the hallway, "Are we going to see her? And the baby?"

Michonne tucked the bottle under her arm as she leaned on the counter, "...If you want to see her soon…"

"I do…and I think I will… but I don't want you or dad to go yet if you're not ready"

Michonne smiled tenderly at his thoughtfulness, "We'll see her, hopefully very soon too"

Carl nodded, but she was sure he sensed her lie. The thought of seeing Maggie anytime soon made her stomach cripple.

The two of them walked back in to the living room, where Judith was giving Glenn a very vague explanation about the game she was playing on her father's phone. Rick's eyes were on Michonne as she sat down, and as much as she tried to ignore him, it made her uncomfortable. His eyes almost glowing beneath his lashes. She refused to fall in to his trap. She knew if the others weren't in the room he'd corner her, he'd ask her why she didn't want to answer Glenn's question, though he already knew why. He'd have the perfect excuse to bring the topic up, and she wouldn't allow that.

…

"Dixon?"

"Hey 'Chonne, I got some bad news"

Michonne sat up straighter in her office chair, "What is it?"

"William… he had a heart attack…"

She stilled, her mouth hanging for a moment, "What? When?"

"This morning-"

"Did he…"

"About an hour ago"

The phone almost slipped from her hands. She frowned as her eyes darted around the office, tears welling up in her eyes for the Grimes patriarch.

"Susan?" She sniffed.

Daryl sighed, "She's here… beside herself"

She wouldn't expect anything else from his wife, "Rick?"

"...Pretty much the same"

She whipped one of her eyes with her hand as her mascara began to burn, "I'm coming".


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13:**

 _'I need you. Right here.'_

"Mr Grimes, we try to be our best to be understanding and respectful when a family has had a loss, but we have certain procedures to go through once there has been a passing… and while we don't like to rush anyone, your mother has been in there a very long time"

Rick looked up at the nurse, only catching the last few words of her sentence, "What?"

"Your mother", She repeated gently, "She's been in the room for a while now and we have to-"

"Her husband died in that room", his voice was calm, but somewhat intimidating to the young nurse.

She blinked as she tried to compose herself, "I understand-"

"If you understand then why the hell are you over here talking to me?", He tilted his head at her, his eyes cloudy and red rimmed.

"Because I'm not in charge here. I don't make the rules, I have to follow them-"

"I don't care who's in charge or who made the rules. None of that means a damn to me"

"Please, Sheriff, we don't want any problems, I would leave your mother in there for as long as she wanted if it were up to me but-"

"Then pretend it's up to you" He sniffed as he shrugged, sitting back in the chair.

The woman looked as if she was losing a battle.

"What's wrong?" Daryl asked as he approached the two of them, looking cautiously between the two.

She inhaled, "We need some help with his mother, leaving the room"

Daryl's eyes slid down to Rick, then back up the nurse, "Any chance you can give her a little while?"

"If I could, trust me, I would, but we need the area. There's a chapel two floors down-"

"Did my father die in a chapel?" Rick slowly stood up, his hands at his sides.

The nurse's mouth snapped shut and she inched back, "Sheriff, I don't want to have to call security, I just need your help-"

"There's no need for that-" Daryl raised a hand to her, but kept his eyes on Rick.

"Call security", He taunted in a monotone.

She looked at Daryl, "I'm under strict orders here- Where's he going?"

Rick walked up the hall, pulling off his windbreaker and throwing it to the floor, before pacing in front of the door of the room his mother was in. He loosened his tie as he did, his eyes dark and unfocused.

"Rick…", Daryl kept his hand out to stop the nurse from going any further.

"I want someone to try", He answered nonchalantly, "I want someone to try. The only way she's leaving that room is if she's ready. Otherwise no one's going in"

The nurse's shoulders fell. She looked at Daryl, whose eyes were only focused on Rick, "I'm gonna have to-"

"Do whatever you have to do so you don't get in trouble but keep 'em back"

She nodded at Daryl's advice before she turned around, and all but sprinted down the hall.

Rick's mind was, oddly enough, blank. He wasn't thinking of anything at all. He just knew he had one task at hand, which was to let his mother mourn in peace. He didn't care for anything else. While he himself was deeply saddened by his father's loss, he knew his father would only worry about his mother, so he made sure to put her first.

"Jeffrey's coming down… said he'd stay with your mom"

Rick nodded, "Good"

He noticed his friend's tone was similar to the one they used when dealing with dangerous criminals. He would hope that Daryl knew that he'd never hurt him. Well, not on purpose anyway.

He paced, his movement never faltering. It was an old habit of his. He couldn't remember why he did it so often, though he remembered seeing his father do it often when he was young. It was meant to be a soothing action, but Rick found it helped keep the anger brewing.

"Rick, I know what you're going through. You know I do"

He only half listened to Daryl, the over half of him preparing to fight.

"But you can't take it out here, on these people-"

"I don't wanna take it out anyone. But I will if I have to", He rolled his knuckles as he continued his laps.

"I don't want to have to stop you. I know what would happen, and I don't want that"

He huffed, shaking his head, "Then don't try to stop me"

Daryl looked as if he was stuck between a rock and a hard place, though Rick noticed how he was still making no attempt to stop him. The nurse kept to her word. Rick noticed her arriving back with two security guards behind her, but they stopped not far behind Daryl.

"Sheriff, we're gonna have to ask you to step aside-"

"Make me!" He roared, causing the nurse to jump, and other patients and visitors down the hall to turn and look them.

The guards looked between each other, as if they were looking for a reason to continue on with the task at hand. Rick would be grateful for the outlet. He wasn't good at channelling his feelings of hurt or upset, he always found it easier to lash out both verbally and physically. He didn't know why but in that moment, he wasn't going to question it, he just wanted a target.

"Rick."

He stopped right in front of the door when he heard her voice, dripping with sadness. He turned to look at her, and easily saw she had been crying only moments beforehand. He didn't know what it was that made him feel so feeble all of a sudden, but his eyes soon welled up again.

He exhaled weakly, "He would've… I wanted to give-"

"I know", She stepped towards him, her eyes examining his.

"Jeffrey's on his way-"

"I'll speak to him when he gets here"

She rested her palm against his cheek and his eyes snapped shut, forcing the tears to fall from his lashes.

A heaviness settled on his chest, as if the weight of his pain finally became apparent. He could barely speak, "Michonne-"

"Daryl will get you home. I'm going to take your mother home, and I'll stay with her until your brother gets here, okay?" Her voice sounded almost serene to him.

He sniffed as he nodded. Another weak breath escaped him, "The kids?"

"Andrea"

He sighed, reaching up and holding her wrist. He didn't realise how badly he needed here with him until she was there, stood in front of him, ready to take the reins. He didn't feel so alone all of a sudden, and allowed him begin his own process of mourning.

…

"Shit"

Rick cursed into the dark kitchen as he knocked over the bottle of scotch. He listened to the rest of the house, hoping not to have woken anyone else. He almost breathed a sigh of relief, until he heard the footsteps on the landing.

He mopped up the mess with a bunch of paper towels, then waited to be caught in the midst of his late night drinking.

"Dad?", Carl appeared, squinting at him.

"Why are you up?", Rick gruffed, straightening up slightly.

"Bathroom", Carl walked over to him, taking in the bottle and the glass in front of him.

"Don't tell your-"

"She's awake. She was gonna come down"

Rick released a little groan.

"...Does it actually help?"

Rick frowned at the question, "No. It just makes you think it does"

Carl nodded slowly, signalling his understanding, "Can I try?"

Rick looked at him, a small smile tugging at his lips, "Alright"

The glass still had a tiny amount left in it, and he handed it to his son. Carl brought it to his lips, and took the tiny sip, his face instantly contorting in disgust. Rick's smile grew.

"Yeah. It's an acquired taste"

"Why would you even drink that on purpose?", Carl walked over to the fridge and grabbed a bottle of water.

Rick was pleased with the fact that he gave his son the strongest of his drinks, hoping to put off his interest in alcohol for as long as he could.

"Think this is the most I've heard you talk all week"

Carl closed his bottle as he leaned against the counter, "Yeah… I don't really know what to say anymore"

Rick nodded, as he struggled with the same feeling.

"...He was just here… he was healthy, right? He was always building stuff and fixing things…"

A lump grew in Rick's throat as he thought about it, "Yeah, he was"

"I just feel like… with the baby… then grandpa… I don't want to be on edge all the time"

"You won't. You can't be", Rick shook his head, "No one's exempt from loss, we will all feel it some way or another… it teaches you to cherish who you have around you now because you really don't know how long you have left with them… doesn't matter how old, young…"

Carl looked up at his father, noticing his tone change. He sighed and rested his head on his shoulder.

Rick had gotten to the stage where he was sick of crying. While he didn't have a problem with the act, he had previously gone months, even years without shedding a tear, but life was throwing punches at him that he couldn't withstand.

"Your mother's gonna come down here and yell at us both"

Carl snickered, "She'd yell at you. I'm her favourite"

Rick found himself chuckling heartily, "Yeah, come on"

The two of them trudged up the stairs quietly before Rick kissed Carl on the head and pushed him towards his room. He headed towards his own bedroom, which he had returned to sleeping in, though he wasn't sure if Michonne was actually sleeping in the bed with him. He'd go to sleep with her beside him, wake in the night sometimes and her side would be empty, but when he woke in the morning, she'd be there again. He wasn't sure if he was imagining things or if she was actually disappearing in the night.

She was sat against the headboard when he walked into the bedroom. He closed the door and made his way over to his half of the bed.

"Did you break something?"

He shook his head, "Just knocked somethan' over"

He knew her well enough to assume she probably rolled her eyes in the darkness. He sat down on the edge of the bed, resting his elbows on his knees as buried his face in his hands.

"Get some sleep"

He turned his head as if he was looking over his shoulder, though his eyes were downcast, "You don't sleep in here"

The delay in her reply confirmed his suspicions before she did, "I don't"

He bit the inside of his cheek as he thought about it.

"It doesn't mean I'm not here"

"No. It means you're holding back", He closed his eyes, even though it was almost pointless to.

"I'm not holding back. I'm still here just-"

"Just not completely"

"What does it matter if I'm here for you regardless? You know I am. I won't be anywhere other than where you need me-"

"I need you here. Right here", He didn't mean to raise his voice, but his patience was wearing thin.

She didn't say anything else, and while the conversation turned in a direction he didn't wish for it to go, he relented, as he didn't want things to sour between them again.

He laid down with a sigh, dropping his legs down on the mattress. He wasn't sure what Michonne was doing when she moved beside him, but his eyes snapped open when he felt her in the centre of the bed, laying on her side. Even though she had been initiating contact between the two of them since the hospital, it hadn't surpassed gentle caresses or reassuring squeezes. Her scent invaded his personal space, and his body was very aware of her touch. He rolled over to face her back, his hand snaking to her front, wrapping around her waist to pull her against him. He relaxed as he held her.

She rested her arm over his, as he brushed his nose along her shoulder blade, his leg intertwining with hers. He drifted off to sleep relatively easier than he had over previous weeks and he hoped she did too.

…

Rick stared at the intricate style of his daughter's hair as she sat on his lap. He knew she was only using him until Carl returned from the bathroom, and he was using her as a barrier for everyone else. He knew they'd come over and get distracted by her, so he wouldn't have to talk to anyone for too long.

His mother sat beside him on the couch, trying her best to interact. That was just in her nature, she felt she had had her moment to grieve, and now it was her time to show her appreciation to everyone who came to celebrate her husband's life. Rick admired her greatly.

Michonne was acting as a buffer, taking lead on any conversations that she could see leading to uninteresting territory. Rick was grateful, as he knew if she could, she would have hidden out in the kitchen, but instead she stood in his parent's living room, at the forefront of it all.

Judith hopped off his lap as soon as Carl reappeared. Rick sighed at the sight of them, watching Carl take his sister's hand and lead them to the other couch.

"Should I get you somethan' to eat, mom?", Jeffrey appeared in front of them, looking down on their mother with concern.

She shook her head, "Not yet. Have the kids ate?"

"Nah, Gerald ain't in the mood"

"Judith will eat if Carl does", Rick inserted.

Jeffrey smiled at his niece and nephew when he found them in the room, "You used to follow me around like that"

Rick raised his eyebrow at his older brother, "Until I was about six"

"More like sixteen", Jeffrey raised both his eyebrows at him, "You always wanted to do what I was doing"

"Yeah yeah"

"Remember when we both got home real late from your little red haired girlfriend's party?"

"Penny"

Rick's eyes darted up to Michonne's back, unaware that she was even listening. He couldn't help but find it sweet that she remembered his first girlfriend's name.

"That's the one", Jeffrey nodded in agreement at her, "Dad chased us up and down the old farm house with that thick ol' belt of his"

Susan surprised everyone when little pearls of laughter fell from her lips, "The both of y'all looked like two deer caught in headlights when that light came on"

The three of them quietly chuckled at the memory, though it didn't take long for the hurt to crawl back in the room. Rick looked to the ceiling as he tried to compose himself, while his brother scanned over the other faces in the room. His mother dabbed her eyes with a handkerchief she kept on her lap.

Rick's attention was drawn elsewhere, when he noticed Michonne quickly snake her way towards the kitchen. He frowned, sitting forward to stand, when he felt his mother tap his leg. He looked at her and she shook her head, before tipping it in the opposite direction. Rick followed her signal, and instantly realised what the problem was. Glenn and Maggie made their way over to them from the front door, and his breath hitched in his throat.

He still gave her a hug, and stood to the side while she and Glenn spoke to his mother. Rick desperately wanted to follow after Michonne, but he was sure that was what his mother was trying to warn him against.

He felt like he had taken steps forward with her but there were still plenty more to go. Though she was trying her best to be supportive to him, she wasn't allowing him the same. She was still keeping him at arm's length, making all her little acts of kindness seem artificial. He didn't want to feel like she had to do anything, he wanted her to want to do it, the same way he wanted to.

"How are the girls?", Rick asked Maggie, the two of them taking a seat on the couch.

She gave a tight smile, "They're great… doing great"

He nodded as he looked around the room, "Good"

"How are you?"

"Good", It was a simple, straightforward reply.

Maggie seemed to see right through it, but chose not to push, "I understand, you know? I get why neither of you... are in a rush to come by, I'm not mad about it, but it would be nice to check in at least? I've tried to call her but…"

Rick's gaze dropped to the floor, "We're sorry about that. I know she is-"

"Don't be. Like I said, I get it, but I've just wanted to see how y'all were doing…"

He huffed, his gaze still low, "Yeah…"

"Where is she?"

"Probably the kitchen… Come on"

He didn't know what he was expecting to happen from leading Maggie to Michonne. One part of him hoped she would at least get past that initial fear of seeing Maggie, and even though it would hurt him to admit it, he wanted her to talk to someone at least.

She was handing Judith a juice box when they walked in, and Rick could almost pinpoint the moment her whole body tensed from across the room.

"Hey there, little miss", Maggie smiled as she crouched down and gave Judith a hug, "You okay, sweet pea?"

Judith nodded, "Yeah… Is Ally here?"

"No, she's home with her grandma"

"Oh...okay"

Rick's eyes rolled up to meet Michonne's but, she had busied herself moving around the kitchen. Maggie stood up and sighed.

"You can't avoid me you know… Ally's been dying to show you her new artwork and she was gonna hunt you down the other day"

Michonne stopped moving, and her shoulders fell as her head dropped forward. Rick knew she was probably on the verge of tears, and he had to fight all natural instinct, as he would have been beside her in the blink of an eye, but he thought Maggie would be better suited for the moment. She went over and pulled Michonne into a hug and the two of them wrapped their arms around each other.

Rick held out his hand to Judith, and led her out the kitchen giving them a moment alone. A large part of him hoped that facing Maggie would be the stepping stone she needed to finally talk to him.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14:**

 _'I know you better than anyone else'_

"...Do you know what happened?"

Michonne slowly inhaled as she gazed over Rick's parent's back yard, "No… they couldn't really give me direct answer…"

Maggie pursed her lips as she thought about it, "Did you hold him?"

She nodded her head against Maggie's, "Yeah. He didn't feel like he weighed anything"

Maggie's eyes slowly crossed the yard, "You didn't name him, did you?"

She sighed, "Nope. Didn't even have anything for him. It was like he wasn't even meant to be here"

"You can't look at it like that and you can't blame yourself for it either. That won't do you any good at all"

Michonne bit her lip, believing her friends theory but not ready to apply it yet, "Tell me about Demi?"

A small smile crossed Maggie's lips, "She looks more like me than the other two. And she's loud like me"

Michonne's eyes lit up only a little, "How's Glenn coping?"

Maggie's smile fell, "He's like a new parent all over again"

She snickered, "Wouldn't expect anything else"

Maggie huffed, looking down at their clasped hands, "How's Rick?"

Michonne's eyebrows rose, "He's… he's trying. But I can see it's all just weighing down on him"

Maggie nodded, "Yeah. Think I can see it too… you two talk about everythan'?"

"No", Michonne answered flatly, "He wants to. I don't"

"Why?"

She frowned into the distance, "I don't even know anymore. I'm just so sick of everything-"

"But he's hurting too"

"I know. That's what makes it so much harder. It's easier for me to stay away from him because whenever I look at him I can just see he's hurting just as much as me… but I can't see past my own rage right now"

"I understand, hell, I've been there but, you have to let go before you get used to it all. You don't wanna forget that you do love each other"

Michonne almost didn't recognise her friend's words. To be completely blunt with herself, she had forgotten that she loved him and how much she loved him.

"Aunt Michonne?"

The two women turned their heads towards the porch door, where Gerald leaned against the frame.

"Uncle Rick's… getting ah… a little-"

"He doesn't want to talk anymore?", She finished for him.

"Yeah", He nodded, his mop of blonde curls bouncing as he nodded.

Maggie's raised her eyebrows at her, "He needs you"

"He does".

…

Michonne lazily combed her fingers through Rick's hair as he lay between her legs, his head on her chest. She stared up at the ceiling, not particularly thinking about anything, but feeling as if there was so much to consider. She knew he was awake, his breathing gave it away, though she didn't mind.

"Are we gonna see her?"

His question didn't deter her movements, she was expecting him to ask about their friends new-born. After her encounter with Maggie, she was feeling a little braver when it came to the discussion.

"Yeah", She breathed, frowning in the lamp shade, "...I think we should try counselling…"

He tensed, "Counselling?"

Her eyes slid down to the top of his head, "Yeah"

He shifted his weight to his forearms so he could look at her, "Why?"

"Because it might help?"

His brow furrowed at her, "You don't think you can talk directly to me?"

She tried not to sigh, "I think it might help to have someone help us see each other's views"

"What is this about?"

"Everything, Rick"

"I know what I did wrong. I've admitted what I did wrong, I've apologised for it, so what's left?"

She couldn't hold back the sigh any longer, "It's not that simple"

"Then tell me. Tell me what makes it difficult?", his eyes were studying hers with great intensity.

She exhaled, "I don't think you respect my opinion, I think you feel like you have to have final say on almost everything but expect me to come to you before I make even the smallest decisions… and I don't think I trust you anymore"

With everything that had already happened, she would think it impossible to see any new pain register on his face, but she was wrong.

"You don't trust me?", He repeated, his voice hoarse.

"I don't think I do", She corrected.

"What do you mean you don't trust me? You think I'm messing around?"

"No. Not like that. I think I can't trust you when it comes to us and other people…"

"What does that mean?"

"It means… it's meant to be me and you making decisions that can affect our family, and when you decide to fly solo then-"

"When have I decided to fly solo?" He shifted again, leaning over her with both weight over his arms.

"When you make serious decisions on your own-"

"I gave Lori some money. I was the world's biggest idiot for that. I know that now and it won't happen again-"

"It's the fact that it even happened in the first place, not that you realised where you went wrong. I never would have expected you to hand anything over to her so easily-"

"I told you why I did it"

"And I told you why I don't think it can trust you now"

His jaw clenched as he let his head hang, "And our son? You wanna talk to everyone but me about that too?"

"I never said I didn't want to talk about it with you-"

His head rolled up, "No. You said you wanted to handle it on your own"

"You can't tell me how to deal with this-"

"I'm not!" He hissed as he leaned down, his face inches from hers, "I know I need you, I have never denied that, but you're using him to punish me for what I did-"

"I am not using him-"

"You need me. I know you need me but you're still angry about what I did, and you're still upset about what I did but you chose to deal with it alone to punish me and to punish yourself"

She stared at him defiantly, though he had left her no room for any argument.

"And you want us to see a counsellor? I just laid everything out in front of you. We know what we need to fix, the question is, do you want to?"

She couldn't keep her eyes on his any longer, and chose to run her hands over her face instead. She couldn't explain the feelings that she had towards him but she knew she felt deflated. It was if she couldn't even find the energy to find the words.

He returned to his forearms, resting his head beside hers, "I love you, Michonne"

Her eyes rolled open.

He kissed up the side of her jaw, and sensation was almost alien to her. Her arms laced around his shoulders and she enjoyed being cocooned beneath him again. She wished they could go back to a happier time and stay there. Even if it was the same day on repeat for the rest of her life, she'd take it.

What started off as soft, little pecks, quickly evolved to firm, little bites on her neck. His tongue swept over the skin he took between his teeth and her fingers made their way back to his hair. She didn't know how far he was intending on going but she wasn't going to stop him. She wanted the passionate side of him, the side that didn't ask any questions.

His lips found hers and she moaned into his mouth when she felt his member against her crotch. He repositioned himself, using his free hand to tug her t-shirt up, only breaking the kiss to allow her to pull it off. His hand roamed over her breasts, his fingers tugging at her nipples. She craved for him, she sucked his tongue into her mouth with urgency, causing him to groan before breaking away from her again.

He sat back on his knees, his eyes trailing down her stomach as he reached for her shorts. His fingers had just slipped inside her waistband when he stopped. A wave of sadness hit her.

She grabbed her tank top as she sat up, about to put it back on when he grabbed hold of her arm.

"You can't hide that from me"

She huffed, running her hand down the side of her face.

He sighed, raking his fingers through his hair in frustration, "What will it take, Michonne?"

Her eyes rolled closed, "Please, just-"

"No, I'm asking you out right, what will it take for you to stop pushing me away-"

"I don't know!" She snapped at him, the tears she held back earlier were back with a vengeance, "I don't know, okay? All I know is that- it hurts. I wake up and it hurts and I got to sleep and it still hurts and I don't blame you, I know you're sorry, and I know you're trying so hard to make things right again but I'm just so angry at everything... I'm just tired and hurt and angry"

He bit his lips together as he watched her, absorbing her outburst. He finally sighed, lying back down beside her, "Come here"

She sniffed, resting her head on his shoulder as he wrapped his arms around her. His hand stroked up her bare back and she closed her eyes, finally feeling some kind of comfort since their world turned upside down. He was in his element, and so was she.

"I love you too"

…

"So you and that sheriff, huh? How'd that happen? Quite the odd couple"

Michonne gave Negan her best unimpressed expression as she sat across from him in the police departments meeting room.

"I'm just curious", Negan threw his hands up in the air, "He's obviously a hot headed asshole, and you seem to be the complete opposite"

Milton snickered, and Negan raised his eyebrow at him, causing Milton's face to fall blank.

"Are you done?", She asked her client, tilting her head at him.

"You haven't answered my question…", Negan grinned, clasping his hands together on the table.

"If I thought it would help your case, then I would answer your question, but it won't, so I won't", She sighed, gathering her papers.

Negan followed her movements like a hawk, "It would help me a lot"

She paused, her eyes darting up to meet his.

"I'd love to know what kind of woman can handle a man similar to myself"

Michonne rolled her eyes as Leon walked into the room.

"Alright, let's go", The officer instructed, resting his hands on his side as he looked down at Negan.

"Such a shame", He pouted at Michonne, "I look forward to our little visits. Next time leave your Butler behind"

Milton frowned at the insult.

"Goodbye Mrs Parker", He chanted like a naughty school boy as he was escorted out the room.

She was glad to see him leave. The man made her uncomfortable, and she couldn't place why, though his seedy advances were part of the problem.

Her time at work was a long one, and she almost counted down the seconds until she could leave. With Rick off from work because of his loss, she wanted to be home with her family. She was slowly beginning to calm within herself and she was feeling better for it, so the last thing she wanted things do was be away from them all.

When she arrived home that afternoon, she was greeted to the smell of popcorn and the TV blaring. She hung her jacket up and stepped into the living area, where Rick was sat in the middle of the couch, with Carl on one side and Judith tucked under his arm on the other. The sight warmed her heart.

"Hey mom", Carl called, having noticed her first as he shoved a handful of popcorn in his mouth.

"Hi Mama", Judith chimed, though her eyes didn't leave the screen. She walked around the back off the couch and kissed them both on the head.

Rick tipped his head back to look at her, "You alright?"

"I should be the one asking you that", She frowned as she looked at the screen, "What is this?"

"Some cartoon Carl picked out, what is it? Last fantasy?"

"It's Final Fantasy", Carl corrected dryly, his tone suggesting that he had corrected his father more than once already, "And It's anime"

"Oh…" Michonne raised her eyebrows as she nodded, then looked down at Rick, "I made us an appointment…"

He tipped his head back to look at her again, this time he was confused, "Appointment?"

She nodded enthusiastically, hoping she wouldn't have to go into too much detail around Carl.

His lip curled as he tried to figure out what she was talking about, "For?"

"For that… course I wanted us to take…"

He winced at her for a few seconds, then he finally caught on. He quickly removed himself from the chair, and she followed him out the room.

"We don't need to see anyone-"

"It might actually help-"

"We're fine! We know what our issues are, we're working on them-"

"Rick. There's nothing wrong with just hearing someone else's advice"

He stared at her, as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"We can just go to one session, see if we can use whatever he has to-"

"I don't need anyone telling me about you. I know you. I know you better than anyone else-"

"It's not about who knows more, it's about working together as a couple and handling our problems in a healthy way"

He snarled at her, "You sound just like one of them-"

She glared back at him as she ascended the stairs, "We are going and that's it"

He groaned, turning back to the living room. She knew having him on board with counselling would be like pulling teeth, but she genuinely wanted to give it a try, and hoped he would do the same.

…

"Well first off, I'm so glad you both could make it! I think it's the first positive step a couple can take when they're trying to rekindle their love and respect for each other…"

Michonne noticed Rick shift uncomfortably in his seat and gave him a warning glance.

"As I said earlier, My name is Aaron, and my job is to help the two of you understand what led to the break down in your communication and how we can lay a better foundation for your relationship…"

Michonne nodded, while Rick stared at the man indifferently.

"So, how about you give me a little background information about your relationship?", Aaron clasped his hands together as he leaned forward and looked at them both with concerned eyes.

"Well, we were married for eight years… divorced for just over two years...and we've been back together for almost a year", Michonne explained.

"Oh okay, and you have children?"

"Yes, a fifteen year old boy and seven year old girl"

"Oh that's great, so would you say your problems stem from the children or is it purely just the two of you?"

Rick sighed and Michonne ignored him, "The two of us"

Aaron nodded, "Okay, how I like to get started is by understanding what brought the two of you here, what conflicts are you struggling to resolve? And if it's okay with you Michonne, I'd like Rick to answer"

She turned to Rick, who sighed before speaking, "I did some stuff that I shouldn't have"

"What kind of stuff…", Aaron probed.

"Thangs", Rick bit out.

"He hides things from me. He never comes to talk to me, I have to find out or back him into a corner for him to speak to me", She informed, knowing he wouldn't go into any more detail.

"Uh huh, and why do you think that is?", Aaron sat back in his chair and looked between the two of them.

"Depends on what it is; sometimes it's because he thinks he's protecting me and sometimes it's because he thinks I'm inferior"

"What the hell Michonne?", Rick winced at her, sitting forward to look at her face.

"Okay, now, this is good", Aaron held his hands up to the two of them, "Rick, you obviously don't agree with that, so why don't you tell her why you feel the need to withhold information?"

His eyes never left the side of Michonne's face, "Because I just don't like bothering you with stuff, I think if I can handle it then I will and I don't want you to carry the stress"

"So you are protecting her in a sense and she does see that", Aaron agreed, "So you are almost on the same page. What else?"

She sighed as she looked around the room aimlessly, "I don't know if I can trust him anymore because of the fact that he holds things back"

"And what happened for you to feel that way?"

Rick groaned and Michonne ignored him, "He gave my son's birth mother three thousand dollars"

Aaron's brow furrowed and his mouth tried to form words.

"My son isn't my biological son. His mother abandoned them when he was still an infant, but she came back a few months ago trying to get in contact with him. And he gave her money"

A disbelieving expression flashed on Aaron's face but he quickly composed himself, "I see, now is that something that's been hanging over your heads?"

"Yes. I mean he's apologised and I try to forgive him but… it's hard"

"Very understandable. So we have two very big things that we need to work on, and to get the ball rolling, I like to start and every session with a couple telling each other one thing that they love about each other. I know it sounds silly but you'd be surprised how hard that can be for some, and these sessions can get a little intense, so it's more of a reminder of why your both here in the first place. Rick, why don't you go first?"

Rick dragged his hand over his face, "Uh… I love her… laugh"

"And what do you love about her laugh?"

Rick frowned as he thought about it, then smirked as his eyes crept over to hers, "She sounds like a seagull when she finds somethan' really funny"

She bit her lips together in a bid to stop her smile.

Aaron grinned at the two of them, "That's lovely, and what about you Michonne?"

She tapped her finger on her knee as she considered her answer, "He's very romantic… he always surprises me… I don't think I'd ever be able to pull off what he does"

"Oh that's sweet! Well I'm glad that wasn't so hard for the two of you, but now, for the ugly side… let's get started"


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15:**

 _'You're copping out'_

Rick stood on the back yard porch, watching Judith play with her skipping rope. Her black curls bounced on her head every time she jumped, her little tennis shoes lit up when she landed. He was content to watch her play.

"Look who's here, dad"

He turned to the door at the sound of Carl's voice, and his face lit up when he saw his son was carrying Lily, "Hey there honey!"

"Hi, uncle Rick", She smiled, her green eyes already locked on Judith.

He took her from Carl's arms, just as Daryl appeared at the door, "What's going on?"

"Thought we'd stop by. Sasha's gone shopping so…", Daryl shrugged.

"Ah, so you're hiding here", Rick smirked as he brushed Lily's hair from her face, "You gonna go play with Judy, honey?"

"Yep!", Lily beamed, and Rick put her down.

"Dad! The sinks being weird again!"

Both Daryl and Rick stepped into the kitchen, to see Carl stood pointing at the sink, "I turned it on and nothing"

Rick frowned at the faucet, "What?"

"Nah, mine did that, check the pipes underneath", Daryl suggested, pointing to the cupboard beneath the sink.

"Alright, let me get my tools"

…

"We're hungry"

Rick could tell from the way Judith's voice echoed that she was crouched down beside sink, watching her father on his back.

"It's alright girls, I ordered us somethan' alright?", Daryl reassured as he stuffed his phone back in his pocket.

They both smiled in unison, before Judith looked down at Rick again, "Did mama break something again daddy?"

Rick's eyes widened on the wrench, "No not this time, but how about you never say that around your mama, okay?"

Judith nodded, "It's okay daddy, we keep secrets from you too"

He lifted his head an inch to look at her, "Like what?"

Judith giggled, "Daddy, you're so funny! It wouldn't be a secret if I tell you!"

Rick stared at her, "You want some marshmallows?"

"Why don't you two go jump on Carl? He loves that", Daryl suggested as he nodded towards kitchen entrance. He waited for them both to leave before he resumed the previous conversation, "So then what?"

"She said I see her as inferior", He spat out the last word as he pulled the wrench away to check on the pipe, moving out the way when water droplets fell down the side of his nose.

"What? Where'd she get that from?"

"I don't know! I wish I did but it's just so… like I can't even begin to understand why she would even say such a thing", Rick felt himself getting annoyed as he repeated the story to his best friend, "So that was the first thing we talked about and it just went from bad for worse. She thinks I still have some kind of feelings for Lori that I can't admit, and that's why I gave her the money"

Daryl squinted as he thought about it, "Yeah, I can get why she looks at it that way"

"What?"

"Daryl shrugged, "I can. If Sasha and I were in your position and she did that… I'd think who's this punk that my wife is tryna' look after without me knowing?"

Rick pursed his lips as he sighed, hooking the wrench back on the pipe, "I was just trying to- okay, you know what? You know why I did it, so does she, but now it's like she's insecure and… It kills me"

Daryl nodded as he took two beers out the fridge, "Yeah. You gotta earn that trust back"

"I don't even know how? I mean I can start to tell her about thangs when they happen but I don't think that's enough. I told her when Lori moved into town but she didn't-"

"Lori moved into town?"

Rick froze in horror when he heard Carl's voice, and Daryl did the same. Rick shifted under the sink to face his son but knocked the wrench out of place and a stream of water poured down on him.

"Shit!", He cursed, attempting to attach the wrench again, when he could hear a rattling sound. He could only imaging what happened above him as what looked like rain fell on his bottom half.

"Damn it!", Daryl yelled as he rushed to the faucet.

"What should I do?!", Carl called out to his father.

Rick gurgled a reply, "The water! Turn off the water!"

Carl disappeared while Rick continued to fight with the pipe and Daryl used a bowl to stop the water shooting from the sink.

"I think you might have a bigger problem!", Daryl called down to him.

"What gave you that idea?!", Rick could have kicked him if he was close enough.

Judith and Lily both gasped as they stood at the kitchen entrance.

"Rick!"

Rick could have groaned at the sound of Michonne's voice, but he was too focused on not swallowing his weight in water.

"Can we play in the water Aunt Mimi?", Lily asked as she looked up at her.

"Oh no honey, I don't want you slip and hurt yourself like your daddy and your uncle are about to", Michonne answered.

The water finally stopped pouring, and Rick panted as he slowly pulled himself from beneath his now least favourite place in the house. Michonne crossed her arms as she looked at him, while Daryl sighed, both men completely drenched.

"Dad! I turned it off...", A partially wet Carl appeared from behind his mother, with his hair stuck to his face and his eyes wide.

Michonne looked at him, then back at Rick and Daryl, "You didn't want to call a plumber?"

Rick sighed, as he knew her calm tone was just for show, "We don't need one. I got it"

"Oh okay. Well that's fine then. Go sit down please girls", They did as they were told as she turned to face Carl, "Carl, go get something for your Uncle to wear please, and leave all the wet clothes in the bath for me"

"Thanks 'Chonne", Daryl rasped.

"No problem Dixon", She smiled briefly at him, then glared at Rick, before turning back down the hallway.

Rick growled aloud as he pulled off his wet shirt, and dropped it on the floor.

"You better not leave that there!", Michonne called from further in the home.

Daryl snickered as Rick snatched the shirt off the floor.

"Yeah yeah"

…

Rick threw himself down on the bed with a sigh. Michonne snuck a quick look at him, but continued reading the papers in her hand.

"Your bringing work to bed now?", He held out his hand, signalling for him to let him see.

She sighed as she handed them over, "Negan's case"

He groaned and handed them back, without bothering to read them, "Please. Keep his name out of this house"

"I wish I could but, I took him on"

"Why did you do that?"

"Because it's what I specialise in-"

"No", He shook his head, "Why did you go back to work so soon?"

He could have almost feel the change in atmosphere when he asked that question. She bit her lips together as she continued to read on.

"You're not gonna answer me?", He repositioned his head to look at her properly.

"I don't think this is something we should discuss outside of counselling"

"So what, we can't talk about our problems alone? We need Arthur there to-"

"Aaron", She corrected dryly.

"Whatever his name is, he doesn't have to be here for us to talk-"

"No, he doesn't, but it could help"

He stared at her as she put her papers away, "So I have to wait until our next session to find out how you feel?"

Her shoulders fell, but she continued to move around beside him.

"Do you still wanna marry me, Michonne?"

He heard her sigh, before she turned around to face him, "Rick, It's not about whether I want to marry you are not-"

"You're copping out. I'm not talking about anythan' else, I'm asking you directly, do you still want to marry me?"

"Can you let me answer the question please?"

"It's a simple yes or no answer-"

"With all the shit we have going on between us, you think it's a simple yes or no answer?"

"Yes, because despite everythan' that's happened, I can say I still wanna marry you without a shadow of doubt"

Her eyes fell from his, to the mattress, and she kept her gaze there as she spoke, "What I want, and what may actually happens, are two different things"

"What do you want then?"

"...To be in love with you again"

Rick could have thanked god that he wasn't standing when she said that, or else he would have crumbled before her very eyes.

"I love you. I know I love you, and I couldn't be without you but… that spark… I don't know how to else to explain it but, something's gone… and I want to find it"

Rick's jaw still hung as he looked at her. He slowly recovered from the blow and turned his gaze from the ceiling, "Alright"

"I didn't tell you that to hurt you Rick-"

"You essentially just told me you're not in love with me? What part of that wasn't meant to hurt?"

"I said I want to be in love with you again-"

"What I did was that bad that you fell out of love with me?"

She sighed as she turned to face him again, "This is why I wanted us to save any discussions about us for counselling-"

"Fuck counselling!", He sat up to look at her properly, "I don't want to have to wait to talk to you!"

"Rick!", She hissed, "Lower your voice!"

He shook his head in disbelief.

"You don't listen properly or even absorb half of what I say! You just hear what you want to hear and that's it-"

"Why the hell would I wanna hear you say that?", He cocked his head at her, "Why would I ever want to hear those words come out of your mouth?"

She rolled her eyes as she turned around, "I'm tired, Rick-"

He wasn't sure what he was hoping would happen from grabbing her arm with one his hands and her cupping her face with the other, but he kissed her with everything he had.

He didn't think she was a fickle woman, or that somehow kissing her would make all their problems go away. He just needed to rekindle the passionate side of their relationship, as that had been something to suffer in recent weeks.

He rid her of her nightgown and underwear before he crawled above her, his eyes hungry from the sight of her naked body. Her hand slid down to her stomach in an attempt to cover her caesarean scar, but he pulled it aside as he kissed down her stomach, his heart aching at the fact that she hid herself that way.

His kisses trailed down between her legs, his hands gripping the back of her thighs. He ran his tongue up and down her slit in preparation, covering her centre with her own liquid. Her moans excited him more than he could ever explain, as he missed hearing her purr from his touch.

He snaked his hand around her leg, so her thigh rested on his shoulder while his middle and index finger spread her lips, exposing her clit to him. His other hand released her thigh and snuck down to her entrance. He gave her one last look before latching on to her bundle of nerves with his mouth and sinking his fingers inside her. Her back arched off the bed and his hand moved from her lips to her stomach, holding her in place as he ravished her heat.

He rocked his hand his fingers inside her while his mouth sucked her in, his tongue rubbing beneath her hood. Her hips moved against him, but she wasn't strong enough to free herself from his hold. He watched her squirm with determined eyes, giving everything he could to make her erupt like a volcano.

Her walls clenched around his fingers and his hand moved at bionic speed. She held on to his arm while her other hand covered her mouth, in a pathetic bid to quieten her cries. In a matter of seconds, her hips jerked and his fingers were soaked.

"Oh god, Rick!", She breathed, her nails almost piercing his arm.

When he was content with his work, he released her and sat up. He watched her with hooded eyes as he pulled off his sweatpants and boxers, ready to give his all again.

He crawled over her, settling between her legs. He wished to know what it would take for her to fall for him again. He wasn't a vain man by any means but he looked after himself, and took pride in his appearance to an extent. He hoped she still found him attractive, as he did her. He could watch her all day and never grow tired of the sight.

His tongue danced with hers as he slipped inside of her, groaning when from the sensation. He moved painfully slow, trying to regain some control so he didn't get too carried away. His forehead rested against hers as he watched himself disappear between her legs. Her fingers toyed with the hair at his nape while her other hand held his bicep, gripping him whenever he penetrative her.

He couldn't hold back anymore. He reached beneath her, his arm holding her against him as he began to pound her centre.

"Yes!", She gasped, tightening her hold on him as he head rolled back.

"This what you want?", He almost growled in her ear, running his lips along her jaw.

"Yeah"

Her voice was barely audible. He wished she had the freedom to be as loud as he wanted her to be but, alas, they had children to think about.

"Come here"

Her head rolled back to face him and he crushed his lips against hers as his plunged in and out of her. She cried out against his mouth, her nails digging into him again. As much as he wanted to watch while he fucked her to sleep, he wanted to feel her more. He loved kissing her, touching her, pressing her body on to his, it was all euphoric to him.

But he had another matter to deal with as he felt her walls grip him and her legs shake.

He broke the kiss to look at her, "You want me to pull out?"

Her eyes snapped open, and she quickly focused on him as she registered his question. Her hands cupped his face as she shook her head.

He studied her face until her orgasm tore her attention from him. He knew she gave him her consent for him to come inside her, but he wasn't sure how good of an idea that was, especially as they were in the midst of if all.

His own release crept up on him and he found himself spilling his seed deep within her anyway. They lay intertwined with each other, panting into each other's personal space. Rick could only hope she felt as amazing as he did.

…

"So! Last week we talked a lot about Michonne feeling as though you saw her as inferior to yourself and you were adamant that that was not the case…"

Rick stared at the counsellor, still failing to see the point of their session.

"I feel as though we made some kind of progress in being able to discuss that issue but there's still a long way to go. I also think we should focus on the issues that run beside those feelings of inferiority, like the lack of trust and love, and even-"

"Wait, lack of love? Who said that?", Rick perked up, looking to Michonne.

Aaron looked between the two of them with wide eyes, "Uh… well Michonne did say that she felt the type of love the two of you show each other was becoming predictable-"

"Okay well, I don't think that should be a considered a problem anymore", Rick tilted his head at Michonne, waiting for her to agree.

She slowly shook her head, "No… I think it still is"

"What?! What lack of love? You said last week that I'm romantic-"

Aaron put his hands up to stop them, "Okay, how about we discuss this-"

"You are very romantic, like every birthday, Christmas, marriage proposal-", Michonne insisted.

"The other night wasn't?", He frowned at her as he crossed his arms.

"That was sex!-"

"Oh, well this has taken a turn-", Aaron winced at them both.

"What do you mean that was sex? Did that not mean anything?", Rick's head jerked back.

"Rick, it always means something, but I told you I want to be in love with you again and you take out your-"

"Hey! How about we talk about this-", Aaron's face was strained.

Michonne ignored him, "That's not what I meant when I said I want that spark back-"

Rick's face pinched in confusion, "We hadn't slept together in months before that, I thought it would help-"

"Okay! How about we all just take a breath!", Aaron clapped his hands together as he took the reins back, "I'm glad your both actively trying to mend your issues at home, that is a great positive step-"

"She's not. I am", Rick added in a monotone.

Aaron's eyebrows rose, "Oh so you feel like this is one sided, Rick?"

"She doesn't like talking to me anymore. I asked her that same night why she went back to work so soon and she didn't answer me"

Aaron turned his attentions to Michonne, "Do you feel like you could answer him now?"

That same change in atmosphere happened again as she tensed up, her gaze on everything else in the room, "I just didn't feel like I deserved to… mourn"

Aaron nodded at her, "And so you busied yourself with work?"

"Yeah. I did"

Rick clenched his jaw as he looked at the side of her face.

"I feel like neither of you have allowed yourself anytime to mourn for both the loses in your life. And neither of you have allowed the other to fully comfort each other-"

"That's not true. I'll always need her, and she knows that", Rick reinforced as he looked over at her.

"You say that Rick, but I have a feeling you can be quite a demanding person…"

Rick's eyes narrowed as they locked on the other man.

"You seem to be the type that will reject what he doesn't like unless it's done the way he wants"

Rick rolled his knuckles, as he cocked his head at him, "And?"

Aaron looked over his body language, before adding dryly, "And you don't take criticism well. I think that's something we can discuss now actually…"

Rick sighed as he dragged his hand over his face. He wished he could just punch the other man and leave, but he knew Michonne wouldn't like it if he did that, so he chose to grin and bear it.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16:**

 _'Don't ever think like that'_

"You ready?"

Michonne tried to ignore how hard her heart was beating in her chest and nodded as she looked at her friend's home through the passenger window. Carl and Judith we were already walking up to the front door, excited to see the family's new addition. She and Rick got out of the car and slowly followed.

The task didn't seem as daunting when she initially agreed to go. She felt like she was making good progress with coming to terms with everything, but the further she walked, the more she wanted to run back to her car and drive home.

"Hey! You made it!", Glenn smiled when he opened the door, bouncing Cleo on his hip.

"Where's the baby?", Judith fired.

"Judith", Rick warned.

She looked up at her father, then back at Glenn, "Hi Uncle Glenn, can I see the baby please?"

Glenn chuckled at her, "Of course you can, come in"

Michonne found herself unable to move right away, but Rick gently nudged her forward with his hand on the small of her back. She wondered how he was able to act so calm, though she knew he would never show that he was feeling just as anxious as she was.

Ally was running riot in the living room, with a nervous Beth chasing after her. She stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the family and turned her attentions to Judith. They all greeted Beth and the toddler before taking a seat on the couch. Michonne hoped her smile didn't seem to plastered on.

"Maggie's just changing Demi, she'll be right-"

"We're here!", Maggie announcer as she came down the stairs. She gave them all and warm smile as she walked into the room, rubbing Demi on the back. Michonne's eyes fell on the little body she carried and her heart sank.

"Can I hold her?", Judith grinned as she looked up at her.

"Of course you can", Maggie repositioned the baby and Judith sat back on the couch.

Michonne admired how both of her children cooed over the little one, and wished she had their courage.

"Uncle 'ick! Look it!", Ally demanded as she showed him her toy.

"Oh Ally, I really hope you grow out of calling me that soon", Rick sighed as he picked her up and put her on his lap, "So what's this?"

"Tractor!", Ally beamed as she held it up.

"So it is! You gonna drive a tractor when you grow up?"

"Yep!"

"That's my girl", He smiled as he kissed her forehead.

"Does your daddy like uncle Glenn, Aunt Maggie?", Judith questioned as Carl took his turn holding Demi.

Maggie nodded, "Yeah he does sweetie, why?"

Judith stood up from the couch, "Daddy said that daddies have to like the mama's husband so they can have a baby"

Both Maggie and Glenn looked at Rick suspiciously, while he just shrugged as Ally climbed off his lap, "It's true… and what else?"

"Mama's have to be forty", Judith recalled effortlessly, "Are you forty aunt Maggie?"

Maggie sighed as she looked from Rick to Judith, preparing to lie, "Yes dear. I am forty"

Glenn snickered, which earned him a displeasing look from Maggie. Michonne watched them all interact with a smile, though she was feeling fearful as the baby slowly made its way over to her.

"Dad", Carl nudged his father as he bounced Demi.

Michonne noticed Rick tense as he looked at the baby, but he still took her in his arms. His eyes searched over her face for a moment, before a smile spread across his.

"Well look at you", He chuckled as the little girl's eyes examined him, "We're both sizing each other up, huh? You look just like your mother"

"She does doesn't she", Maggie laughed, "Don't let her fool you, she's loud too"

"The loudest", Glenn agreed.

"She's just reminding you that she's here", Rick kissed her forehead as he rested her on his shoulder.

Michonne felt a whirlwind of emotions swarm her. Seeing Rick with the baby made her heart sing just as much as it broke her. He looked over at her with a questioning look, and she nodded, though she still wanted to run.

He turned Demi to face her, "Look! You gonna say hello to your Aunt Mimi? She's the one that's gonna buy you ridiculously overpriced clothes that you're gonna happily ruin"

Michonne gave a small smile as she took hold of the tiny body. As soon as she held her she could see that she did indeed look more like Maggie than their other daughter's. Her wispy hair was brown, and Michonne was sure she could make out her green eyes. She rested her on her shoulder when she felt the tears start to sting her eyes.

"You're doing just fine", Rick encouraged as he rested his hand on her back.

She would have thanked him for the support, if she wasn't trying to hard not to sob and drench the baby in her tears. Everything she had feared since losing her son, didn't seem as scary anymore. She didn't think she would find herself in a room with a baby anytime soon but there she was, cuddling the new addition to her large extended family. She had a new found confidence.

…

"I'm being framed. When the fuck would I have a chance to run a drug ring? I have too many women in my life to cater to… and I'm always looking for more"

Michonne rolled her eyes at Negan, while Milton shifted uncomfortably in his seat. She put down a sheet of paper and slid it over to him, "You have to be able to explain these transactions. You can't be depositing this much money from selling used cars. It makes no sense-"

"You look like a woman of great taste, I'm sure when you want something, you can find the money for it, right?", Negan grinned at her as he sat forward in his seat.

Her lip almost curled in disgust.

"Alright, get out", Rick announced as he burst into the room with Eric behind him, "Times up"

Negan sat back with a snarl, "I don't like you interrupting my time with my attorney sheriff"

"And I don't like you at all", Rick replied without missing a beat, resting his hands on the table, "Now move"

Negan smirked as he rose from his seat, "Anyone would think you don't trust your woman around me?"

Rick stood up straighter as he eyed the other man. Michonne could see he was looking for a reason to his him, and sometimes her fiancé didn't need one.

She quickly stood from her seat, "We're done so he can go"

Rick's eyes didn't leave Negan's, "See? You're done"

The other man smirked, as he walked past him, "Goodbye Mrs Parker"

She realised there would be less tension in the room when neither Alpha male encountered each other. She quickly cleared away their evidence and followed Milton out the room, with Rick behind her.

"I was thinking that we should all go over to my mom's later, see how she's doing", Rick informed as she slowed down.

"Yeah. We can do that", She nodded as she adjusted her bag on her shoulder, "Your brother is going to leave soon right?"

"Yeah… I talked to him, he wants Gerald to stay down here with her…"

She glanced at him, "That's a good idea, the kids would love to see him more often"

"That's what I thought", He rested his hand on her lower back as they walked down the hall.

She opened her mouth to say something, when she spotted a familiar face at the front desk. She winced when she saw it was Lori.

"Oh great", Rick groaned when he spotted her too, "Let me handle-"

"Don't you dare. I am standing right here, and I want to hear every damn word she has to say", She almost growled at him.

He clenched his jaw at her, before spitting out, "Fine"

Lori approached them, though her steps faltered when she noticed Michonne beside him. Michonne looked the woman over, noticing she was a little bit more dressed up than the previous times she had seen her.

"Hi… Uh I just wanted to come and talk to you. To smooth things over after… I heard about your dad and I just wanted to-"

"Yeah I get it. Is that all?", Rick hurried.

"Look, I'm sorry about what happened before, I honestly don't want any more animosity between us. I even gave Shane some money to help pay you back and I hope we can clear this whole thing up. I was wrong for what I did and once again, my daughter shouldn't have to suffer for that"

"So are you done?", Rick pressed.

She sighed, "Oh my god, okay look, Michonne I just want to-"

"Hey!", Rick barked, almost making Michonne jump as she was so close to him, "You don't talk to her. The only person that you speak to from my family, is me. You understand that?"

"What on earth is wrong with you? All I want to say is-"

"I heard it. And I asked if you were done, so are you?"

The woman's face darkened as she raised a pointed finger at them, "I've been nice enough, and I have tried to right my wrongs but you just keep throwing it back in my face and I will have it no longer! I will get my son back, and there will be nothing you can do about it"

Michonne felt a rage course through her that she never felt before, "Excuse me?"

"Watch your mouth", Rick warned as he put his hand in front of Michonne.

"I'm done watching my mouth! He's mine and I will have him back with me and I will have my custody restored-", Lori spat at them both.

Michonne attempted to slip past Rick, "You think a judge will give you custody back?! In what world-"

Lori smirked, "You don't know what I'm capable of"

"He doesn't want a relationship with you! What part of that do you not understand? Do you seriously think you're completely blameless in this?!"

"I know what I did was wrong but you've all brainwashed him to hate me! I don't know what you've told him but he should be able to forgive me and want to know his real mother!"

"Rick, let go of me-", Michonne was determined to get to the other room but Rick's grip was stronger.

"I'm letting you know that you can get on that track if you want to, but we will ram you right off", Rick growled at her, "Now leave"

Lori scowled at them both before spinning on her heel and storming down the hall.

"Get off of me Rick!", Michonne tried to break free from him but his arm was wrapped around her waist.

"Everythan' alright?", Leon asked as he looked down the hall at Lori.

"Fine, open that door", Rick instructed as he still tussled with Michonne.

Leon looked at the closet suspiciously but still did as he was told, pushing the door open and switching on the light. Rick lifted Michonne off the floor and stepped in with her, closing it behind him.

"Hey! Calm down!", He ordered as he put her down.

"No! Did you hear what she just said!", She yelled back at him.

"I was right there with you Michonne-"

"Then why the hell are you so calm! She's threatening to take my son from me!"

"Hey! That won't ever happen-"

"Rick! Get out of my way, now!", She felt herself get angrier as he still her wrist.

"No! Let her go! She can't do anythan' and you know she can't so why are you even-"

"He's yours! You made him! I don't have that kind of reassurance! If she somehow even gets this case before a judge then-then", her shoulders fell as her voice broke, "I don't want to lose another son"

Rick's grip tightened on her wrist as he pulled her closer to him, "Don't ever think like that, you hear me? Don't."

She breathed deeply as she stared into his eyes, his dilated pupils almost unnoticeable.

"You know it won't happen, she can try, but she hasn't got a leg to stand on, a judge will throw that case right out the window", He brought her hand to his face, aligning her pal with his jaw, "You know I will never let anyone take him from you"

Her heart slowed it's thumping as she calmed.

"The only person that's gonna decide where Carl goes is Carl. And you know he won't leave. He'll probably try to live with us until he's thirty"

A ghost of a smile traced her lips, "That's not funny"

"He'll live in the basement, spend his days texting and eating pizza"

She reluctantly chuckled, "Stop it"

"Judith will probably leave when she meets the first man that can afford her"

A cackle left her as she dropped her head on his shoulder, "Alright Grimes"

He kissed her forehead as he encased her in his arms, "No one's splitting my family up, alright? You belong with me and they belong with us and that's how it'll stay"

She closed her eyes as she sighed, "Yeah"

"We got this"

…

"I cannot believe that son of mine is gonna be thirty seven. I still remember the day he was born like it was yesterday"

Michonne smiled at Susan as she looked for a knife in the utensil drawer, "He'd probably tell you he does too"

Susan giggled, then released a long sad sigh.

"How are you doing Susan?"

The older brunette woman sighed as she washed the lettuce, "Just taking it one day at a time, honey"

Michonne nodded as she cut the tomatoes, "You know you're always welcome to stay over? You and Gerald can come stay?"

"I appreciate that. We'll do it one of these weeks, I know the kids would love to spend time with their cousin"

"And you"

Susan chuckled, "Judith might do, but Carl's getting older. I'm not as interesting anymore"

Michonne scoffed, "Neither am I. And Judith only ever has eyes for her father"

"Oh of course! He reminds me of my father. When I brought William home he chased him off with a shotgun"

Michonne's eyes widened at her.

"Yep. But William kept coming back, so one day I hid his gun, so he'd at least talk to him"

"Did he?"

Susan smirked, "My father had a lot of guns. He chased him with his pistol instead"

Michonne laughed at her story heartily, as she put the tomatoes in a bowl.

"The men of my life", Susan smiled as she shook the lettuce dry, "Jeffrey's a little more calm like me but Rick is almost a carbon copy of his father. I know William came across as a quiet man in his later years, but he used to have that same fire Rick has now. They're territorial, hard headed, damn near possessive"

"Yep", Michonne agreed readily.

"But they're just as loving. They just love in their own way. When I met my William, he told me he's going to give me roses on that day for the rest of my life… he said he-", She huffed as she looked to the ceiling, her eyes glistening, "He said he never wanted forget the day he fell in love… every year without fail I got my roses from him and, if I knew that this would be the last year I'd get them… I'd have looked after them better, maybe planted them or somethan'..."

Michonne was a mess as she looked at her fiancé's mother. She wiped her eyes and made her way over to her, "Oh, Susan"

Susan chuckled at her as she embraced her, "Oh honey! I didn't mean to make you cry! Stop all that now"

"Please make sure you come and stay with us", Michonne requested as she squeezed her.

"I will. I promise I will", She rocked Michonne side to side.

"...What's going on?"

Michonne straightened up when she heard Rick's voice. He was stood at the kitchen door with a frown on his face as he looked them both over.

"Oh nothing, just some girl talk", Susan dismissed as she rubbed Michonne's back, "Where are the kids? Dinner's almost ready"

"Judith's confiscated Carl's phone so the boys are watching TV", Rick informed as he picked up a slice of the cucumber.

"Fixed that porch light. Should be working just fine now", Jeffrey announced as he stepped in through the back door.

"Oh good, thank you son", His mother beamed, resuming her salad preparation.

"You alright?", Rick asked quietly, nudging Michonne.

She quickly nodded, "Yep, fine"

"Hey, you know who I thought I saw today?", Jeffrey put down the toolbox to look at Rick. He squinted at his younger brother in a way that Michonne found strange to see, as it was like looking at Rick if he was only a couple of years older.

"Who?"

"Lori… it looked like her but she don't live around here, right?"

Michonne groaned as she raised the knife to cut through another cucumber.

Rick took the knife off her as he answered his brother, "Yeah, It probably was. She moved down here a while ago"

His mother looked at him with wide eyes, "She moved back? Why? When? What for-"

"She wanted to so she did", Rick answered vaguely, bumping Michonne out the way so he could continue to cut the cucumber.

"She still trying to see…", His brother looked towards the kitchen door to signal Carl.

"Guess you could say that"

"She better leave my grandson alone", His mother frowned, her brown eyes flashing in the light, "She's manipulative piece of work. Remember when I told you she told a few women in town that you used to hit her?"

"What?", Michonne looked to Rick, surprised by the information she had never heard before.

"Yep! Just before she left! So it looked like she was running away because she was scared of him!", Susan slammed down her hand on the counter, "Her mother had the nerve to ask me to go along with it! That whole family are just a damn bunch of-"

"Mom", Both Rick and Jeffery warned as their mother went off on a rant.

"Why didn't you ever tell me this?", Michonne smacked Rick's arm as she turned back to him.

He looked at the area she hit and smiled, "You haven't hit me in a while"

She dropped her gaze to his arm and stilled. It was true, she hadn't hit him in a quite some time, and she didn't even think about it. It was something of a bad habit, but weirdly enough, it had become a staple in their relationship. Her eyes trailed back up to his, which were waiting to meet hers, and she sighed.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17:**

 _'That was perfect'_

"Now I'd just like to know how the two of you feel our sessions are helping your relationship outside of the office? Do you feel as if you're communicating better? Trying to understand each other more?"

Rick's brow fell to a straight line, "I feel like everythan's getting better. I don't even know why we're still coming-"

"It's getting better but we still have a lot to work on", Michonne interrupted.

"A lot? She hit me the other day, and she hasn't hit me in months-"

"Oh?", Aaron's eyes widened with concern.

"Not like that, it's just she hits me when she wants to get my attention or...I did somethan' wrong…"

"This isn't clarifying the situation any better", Aaron winced at them both.

"It's more of a whack. He hits, I whack", Michonne explained.

Aaron's expression didn't change.

"Not in a violent way", She held up her hands to him, "Look, like this-"

"Oh okay, okay, I get it", the man still looked confused but nodded anyway, "So what you're saying Rick is now that you're back to behaving how you were before, you don't see the point anymore, whereas Michonne still wants you to work on a few things. I would think this would be a good opportunity for you to show Michonne that you're willing to follow her lead, by sticking to the sessions until you both feel like-"

"Oh of course you'd say that. I'm probably paying for your next vacation, right?", Rick scoffed.

Aaron's mouth fell agape.

"It's true! Why can't we stick to this until we're both ready to be done with it, not just you? And apologise to him. He's trying to help us", Michonne scolded lightly.

Rick scowled at her, and she sent him a menacing look right back. He would have sat there and played that game with her all afternoon but he didn't want to spend any more time there unnecessarily, "Alright. Fine. Sorry"

Aaron gave him a single nod, "Thank you, and she's right, I am trying to help you both. I would hope that I can. So! One thing I picked up at the last session was that Rick feels as though you know that he needs you…"

Michonne's eyes darted behind the man for a second, "Yes… I do know that"

"Would you say the same for him?"

Rick's heart began to thump wildly, he was tempted to look down at his chest to see if it was coming out of his ribcage.

"This has always been an underlying problem between us-"

"She's coping out", Rick shook his head as he looked at her.

"Stop saying that!", She hissed at him, "Can you let me answer?"

"Yes, Rick let her answer please", Aaron reinforced.

Rick's head dropped back on to the couch.

"As I was saying, this has always been an underlying problem in our relationship because Rick is very verbal. He loves to hear stuff like that and he likes constant reassurance and it's not that I see a problem with that, it's just I'm not… like that. I will tell him I love him and I will tell him I need him but not every day-"

"I have to ask her to tell me she loves me", Rick's head rolled back up.

"No you do not-"

"Yes I have! I've asked you to tell me you love me more and you did it for like a week or two and that was it"

"Oh you mean that one time you asked me?"

"Let me show you how she reacts", Rick sat up straight and turned to face Michonne. He took her hand in his and gazed at her, "Michonne, how much do you love me?"

Michonne huffed, squinting at him, "A lot"

"You see right there?", Rick pointed at her, "She's had to do somethan' else with her eyes so she didn't roll them-"

"Okay, okay! So, Rick would like more affection in the relationship, is that what you're saying?", Aaron looked as if he was trying his best not to laugh.

"That's exactly what I'm saying. We used to be all over each other and it went both ways. Now? She'll only flirt with me when she wants somethan' done-"

"That is not true-", Michonne rebutted.

"Oh no, my mistake, if she wants me to buy her diamonds or somethan'", He scoffed.

"Diamonds?", Aaron repeated with raised eyebrows.

"Yeah! They're not cheap are they? But if she wants it, she gets it. She knows that"

"That's the problem right there!", She pointed at him, "How on earth do you measure up to that? He will literally give me anything I want! I asked for a divorce and he gave me one with no argument or anything! If I said I want us and the kids to move in to my office he would probably have us packed and ready before I get the damn sentence out my mouth!"

Rick stared at her finger, "How is that a problem?"

"Rick, I let you make decisions on nearly everything. You have final say on nearly everything, but that all gets overshadowed by your big romantic displays of giving me whatever I want"

"Ah! Now, this is a very specific issue. Rick, Michonne's just told you she feels like your affections overshadow her way of showing you affection, do you agree that that could be the case?"

Rick frowned at the man, "No, not at all. How is letting me make decisions showing me any kind of affection? I mean it shows me that she respects my judgement and my opinion, but I'm talking about telling me how she feels-"

"I prefer to show it by letting you take the lead-"

"Fine then, I'd rather you took full control of everything if it meant you told me you loved me more often"

Her shoulders fell as she looked at him, and for a moment, Rick could see that his words touched her, before she got angry again, "See! Everything about him just oozes romance and affection, and I'm not good at expressing myself that way"

"Okay well, why don't we try? Don't think it over, just tell Rick how you feel about him"

Rick folded his arms as he looked at her. She turned in her seat to face him, her eyes scanning over his face.

"I love-", She began.

"Without using the words I love you", Aaron quicker edited, "Go ahead"

Michonne looked like she was holding back a growl, "Fine… you mean so much to me that I evidently can't put into words-"

"Try", Rick rasped.

She glared at him, "I am you jackass-"

Rick smiled at her, "You haven't called me that in a while either"

"No insults please!", Aaron insisted.

She sighed, and Rick could see she was losing her patience with the other man, which he naturally found amusing, "Okay, the only way I can think to describe how much I care about you as by talking about our parents, because we both lost one and the other is widowed and it's made me realise that... I don't think I'd be able to go on if anything happened to you. And I don't mean that to diminish how much your mom loved your dad or my dad loved my mom, I just mean, without you… I would lose one of the three most important reasons I have to live"

Aaron clapped his hands together, "I think that was-"

"Quiet", Rick instructed with a quick glance at Aaron, before taking Michonne's hands in his, "That was perfect"

"Really? It wasn't cheesy?", She titled her head at him.

"Not at all", He smiled, "It's better than anythan' I've ever said"

A innocent chuckle left her lips, "No it was not"

"It was absolutely was", He brought her hand up to his lips and kissed her palm.

"Okay so how about I set you two a little task? You both have to tell each other how you feel about the other in the morning and in the evening, every day until our next session"

Rick side eyed the man, but felt Michonne's grip on his hand tighten, so he nodded, "We can do that"

"I'll definitely try", She too, nodded in agreement.

"Great!", Aaron grinned at them.

…

"Daddy, what do you want for your birthday?"

Rick looked at his daughter under his arm, "Did mama ask you to ask me?"

Judith's little blue eyes narrowed, which Rick found amusing as she had mastered her mother's trademark look, "No…"

Rick chuckled at his daughter's poor attempt at lying. He was about to say something else to her when he heard Carl come through the front door, his skateboard dropping to the floor with a thud. His son began to stomp up the stairs.

"Hey! Get back down here!", Rick called sternly, making Judith jump, "Sorry sweetie"

Carl stomped back down the stairs and stood in the doorway, his hair covering his eyes, "What do you want?"

Rick's eyebrows shot up as he registered his sons tone, "Judith, go to the kitchen for a minute, please"

Judith looked up at her father's face, then quickly scurried out the room, not needed to be told twice.

Rick slowly rose from the chair, his eyes refusing to blink, "You wanna run that by me again?"

Carl scoffed, throwing his hands up in the air, "Just yell at me and get it over with"

Rick was stunned at his son's attitude, "You're gonna wished I just yelled at you-"

"What's going on?", Michonne appeared holding Judith's hand, frowning at them both.

Rick stepped forward with a serious tone, "Your son-"

"Hey!", She raised a hand at Rick to stop him, "Carl? What's the matter with you?"

"Oh my god, I don't want to talk about it", Carl turned to go up the stairs when Michonne grabbed his arm.

"I promise you, you'd rather have one angry parent than two", She warned, "Now get in that room"

Carl sighed and slumped back into the living room. Rick paced as he watched his son take a seat in the recliner.

"Speak", Michonne ordered.

He frowned at the floor, "Lauren's moving"

Rick's steps faltered as he looked at Michonne. The two of them quickly had a conversation with their eyes as they remembered that they were meant to discuss the issue with her parents. Rick felt awful for forgetting to handle it, but he was still too shocked with his son to express it.

"She just told you?", Michonne questioned cautiously.

"Yeah", Carl huffed, his shoulders still stiff.

Michonne gave him a sympathetic look, "That's lame"

Rick frowned at her, and even Carl looked up at her with a confused expression. Judith's little eyes darted from the males to her mother, and while she probably didn't understand the social atrocity her mother had just committed, she still frowned too.

"Oh stop it", She dismissed, "Look, we're sorry about that, you have all right to be upset about it, but you don't lose your manners because of it. You can talk to us about it and we'll understand if you want to be alone for a while. You had your father ready to dig your grave out back"

"And your mother would have been so upset that I had to bury you alive for sassin' me", Rick added.

Carl began to smile, though his head was down, "I'm sorry. It just sucks"

"We imagine it does. You didn't leave Lauren upset, did you?", Rick put his hands on his sides as he looked down at his son.

Carl kept his head down.

"You better call her and apologise, don't be a jerk just because you're hurt. She can't do anythan' about it, she just has to go where her parents take her"

"I know", Carl agreed, pulling his hood up over his head.

"How about we have them over before they go? For dinner? So we leave it on good terms?"

Rick was tempted to roll his eyes at Michonne's idea, but decided against it, "Yeah, what your mother said"

Carl's shoulders fell as he relaxed, "I guess that's a good idea"

"Good. Go call her, apologise and make it happen, okay?", Michonne insisted as she nodded towards the stairs.

Carl stood up and sighed, his hair still covering his eyes, "I'm sorry, dad"

"I appreciate that son, and let that be the last time or your mother might not get here in time", Rick raised his eyebrows at Carl again, "Go on now"

Carl left the room and Rick crumbled to the couch. Michonne snickered at him as Judith quickly returned to her spot beside her father.

"Did you hear him?", Rick lowered his voice as he spoke to Michonne.

"I heard the door slam, I was coming when Judy came running to me, then I heard the 'Get it over with' part", She smirked, "I'm surprised you didn't eat him"

"I nearly did. I swear, I nearly did", Rick shook his head in disbelief as he sat back in the chair.

"Are we gonna keep watching cartoons daddy?", Judith questioned.

"Of course we are princess. Your brother didn't mean to interrupt us but he lost his mind so mama had to help him find it"

Judith giggled, "Carl's so silly"

…

"Have we even made any headway on this? I feel like we're going around in circles here, and no offence, but your fiancée is a damn good lawyer so I'm sure she's gonna unravel everything we propose… no pun intended"

Rick frowned at Leon from behind the desk in the meeting room. He was tired, and frustrated with the case, but he was still very determined.

"Thomas has already named everyone he could, but now he and Negan are here, he's clammed up. Won't say another word", Eric shrugged as he chucked his pen down on the table.

"That slick son of a bitch is the one we want", Daryl insisted from against the wall, "But he doesn't get his hands dirty"

"His accounts show he's been depositing what he's meant to be earning a year, two or three times a month. He can't explain that", Rick groaned, "They found nearly fifty thousand all over his house-"

"And another twenty five in his girlfriend's house", Morgan added, "They must have hidden the rest because I don't know how he's managing to still pay for his attorney himself-"

"Sorry to interrupt!", Sheila slipped through the door with an apologetic look, "Rick I think somethan' happened to your truck"

Rick frowned at her, "What?"

"Well… it's gone"

The pen Rick held dropped to the floor.

"What?", Daryl looked just as confused as he did.

Rick stood from his seat and followed Sheila, while the others followed him, "My truck is gone?"

Sheila panted as she tried to keep up with his large strides, "I went outside to have a cigarette and I just happened to look over there and I noticed it weren't there, so I looked around and I can't see it at all-"

"You gotta be kidding me", He muttered as he shoved the front doors to the department open. He didn't know why he loosened his tie, but he was angry and it felt like the right thing to do before he started his search for his vehicle.

"Surprise!"

Rick stopped dead in his tracks when he reached the car park. Sheila's arms were out and she wore a large smile as she pointed to the brand new black SUV parked, which had a huge silver bow on the front and was parked where his truck was. Rick's brow dropped to a straight line as he looked back and forth between her and the vehicle.

"Wha-", He turned back to look at Daryl, who wore the same, bewildered expression he did. He looked back at the car and tilted his head at it as he slowly caught up with what was happening. Then it hit him like a lightning bolt, "Michonne"

"Took you a minute", Sheila rolled her eyes, "Go on! Go look at your shiny new car!"

Rick took pigeon steps towards it, his mind packed to the brim with questions.

"She's a beauty!", Leon commented as he came up behind him, smacking him on the shoulder.

"She is. Looks like she's fresh from the showroom too", Daryl crouched down as he inspected the vehicle.

Rick winced at the car, still feeling a mixture of shock and confusion. He took out his phone and quickly called Michonne, as he needed some clarity.

"Yes, Grimes?"

"How?", He rasped as he stepped away from his friends, his eyes trailing up and down the hood.

"How, what?"

"The car, Michonne?"

"Oh. Don't ask me questions like that. It's your birthday present from me and the kids so just-"

"What's the payments on it?"

"Rick. Stop. I've handled all of that so don't even-"

"Is it paid off?", He frowned into the phone with slight panic.

"Oh my god", She groaned, "Do you like it Rick? That's the reason I bought this for you, is so you'd like it-"

"Bought? So it is paid off?"

She hung up the phone. He was tempted to call her back but relented, knowing he'd probably pissed her off. He didn't mean to though, he just wasn't good at accepting obviously expensive gifts. He didn't mind giving them but receiving them made him uncomfortable, especially since it was a luxury vehicle. He couldn't help but try to work out how they could afford it, and he sifted through all of their accounts in his mind. It wasn't adding up.

"Why'd you look so sad?", Morgan chuckled at him disbelievingly, "It's a lovely gift"

He nodded slowly, his tongue circling a tooth in his mouth, "It is, it really is"

"Then why'd you look like you've just seen a puppy get run over?", Leon asked dryly.

Rick opened and closed his mouth a few times in a bid to answer but nothing came out.

"He's worried about the bill", Daryl answered for him.

Leon, Morgan and Eric all winced as they sucked air between their teeth, "Oh… Yeah"

Rick sighed as he dragged his hand over his face, hoping the grand gesture wouldn't cause any new problems for the two of them.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18:**

 _'Damn devil'_

"Happy birth-"

"How much did the truck cost?"

Michonne growled as she rolled on to her back, shaking her head in annoyance.

"You said you'd tell me everythan' on my birthday. Well it's my birthday-"

She scoffed at him, "You woke up all of four minutes ago and your already harassing me to tell you-"

"I wanna know. I can't enjoy it until I do. And Where's my old truck?"

She ran her hands over her face as she stared up at the ceiling, "I don't get it, do you think I'd put us in financial upheaval just for your birthday present?"

"No I don't think that, I just want to know if this was an expense we could have done without-"

"The repayments are low. In fact I got a good deal and they're lower than the one on your truck"

He winced at her as he sat up in the bed, "How much did you put down on it then?"

She rolled her eyes as she looked at the alarm clock on the nightstand, "Just over half"

He quickly frowned, "Just over half? You put down just over half?"

"I did"

"Where did you even get half from?"

"My account", She snorted playfully.

He stared at her as he tried to grasp what she was saying, "Michonne-"

"Rick, I don't blow through my money every month like you like to think I do-"

"No I definitely know that you don't because I feel like I pay for everything-"

"Exactly", She bit at him, "I thought it was about time you had a new truck-"

"Where's the old one?"

"At your mother's. I was going to sell it…", He looked horrified at the notion, "But I knew you'd look at me like that so I didn't"

"Good. I'm not ready to part with it yet. We brought Judith home in that truck", He recalled as he laid back down.

"We did", She smiled at the memory.

"So you have money hidden away-"

"I have money put aside just in case-"

"But you're not putting it in our joint savings account because…"

"Because I don't think it's a good idea to keep large sums in one account. Spread them out, just in case something goes wrong with one"

He looked as if he reluctantly nodded in agreement as he frowned at the ceiling.

"Happy birthday daddy!"

Judith bolted in to the room, followed by a very tired looking Carl. Michonne nearly gasped as her daughter climbed over her to get to her father. Carl jumped on the end of the bed, holding his hand out for a pillow. Michonne chucked one at him and he laid down between them.

"Thank you guys, I loved my gift", Rick smiled as Judith sat on his stomach. Michonne reached beneath the bed and pulled out a small gift bag to hand to him. His eyes darted back and forth between her and the bag for a moment before he shook his head, "No"

"Take it", She growled at him.

"No", He retorted sternly.

"But I picked that one daddy", Judith's face registered nothing but hurt.

Rick's face fell, "Oh well, daddy will take it then, thank you sweetie"

Judith's face lit right back up and Michonne realised she should have let Judith give it to him in the first place.

"Your gift from me is downstairs. I couldn't carry it", Carl announced from behind his phone screen.

Rick winced at his son as he pulled out the box in the bag. He frowned at it, "A new phone? What's wrong with the one I got now?"

Both Michonne and Carl groaned at him, while Judith looked hurt again, "You don't like it daddy?"

Rick seemed to chastise himself internally, "I absolutely love it! It's way better than the one I have now"

Judith's eyes scanned her father's face for a moment before she smiled, "Okay"

"What did you get me Carl?", His eyes scanned over the back of the phone box.

"You have to see it yourself", Carl grinned, "That's a joke by the way"

Rick lowered the box, "Is it a mirror?"

Carl gave his father an unimpressed look, which was almost identical to his father's own, "Why would I get you a mirror for your birthday dad?"

"You said I have to see it myself?"

"Yeah but that doesn't mean it's a…", Carl sighed, "Never mind. You'll see it anyway"

Rick looked at Michonne, "You would think it's a mirror right?"

"No. Even though it seems like the obvious answer, it still has to be a gift for you so why would he get you a mirror?", She answered dryly as she took his new phone out the box.

"You just agreed that it would be the obvious answer though", He pulled a face at her.

She ignored him, "Do you remember where we were this time last year? Who you were with?"

"The vanilla lady", Carl snickered from behind his phone.

She chuckled heartily.

"What's this?", Rick asked Judith as he pointed at her little pink purse on her lap.

Judith grinned as she opened it, taking out a toy hair brush and a few sparkly grips. She said nothing as she began dragging the brush through his hair, bringing his curls over his face.

"I talked to Lauren.. she asked if we could do dinner on Sunday night?", Carl sat up and eyed them both.

Michonne nodded as she looked at Rick, "Yeah we can do that right?"

Rick looked at them both from beneath his new bangs, "Sure"

Carl laid back down and resumed tapping on his screen.

"So what are you going to do today birthday boy?", Michonne asked as she watched Judith begin to place the clips in her father's hair.

"I am going to relax at home with two of my favourite people", He winced as Judith pressed the grip closed a little too hard.

"Lucky. I have a meeting with Negan's wife", She rolled her eyes.

"Keep his name out this house", He warned.

"Yeah yeah", She sighed inspecting his new decide.

"Daddy, can I have your old phone?", Judith asked as she gathered the smallest amount of his hair in to floral scrunchy.

"Daddy will think about it sweetie", He insisted.

"You said that about my crown", Her little mouth pouted.

Rick's heart seemed to break, "How about we go shopping today then? Just the two of us-"

"I'm literally right here", Carl inserted from behind his phone.

"Just the three of us", Rick mended.

"I want to go shopping too", Michonne teased with a grin.

Rick pursed his lips at her, "Very funny"

She giggled as she finally got out of bed, "Come on, you still have to open Carl's gift"

"All done!", Judith announced with a clap of her hands, "You look pretty for your birthday daddy"

Carl moved his phone to look at his father, biting his lips together as he snickered.

"You better tell your sister she did a good job", Rick narrowed his eyes at Carl.

"You did a great job Judy", Carl lied as he held his phone up and took a picture of the two.

"Come one my little hair stylist", Michonne nodded her hair toward the door as she held her hand out to Judith.

She climbed off her father and hoped off the bed, taking hold of her mother's hand. Michonne took her downstairs, but stopped in the living room so she could see Rick's reaction to Carl's gift.

The large flat present was resting beside the fireplace as Rick walked in, followed by Carl who continued to marvel at his father's hair from behind him.

Rick tore across the top of the object and frowned at the silver frame, before pulling it apart completely. Michonne smiled as she watched him take a step back, speechless.

"And you thought I'd get you a mirror", Carl joked from the recliner.

"Who's that mama?", Judith questioned as she sat on her lap.

"That is your grandpa, and that's daddy when he was a little boy", She informed quietly as she watched Rick.

She thought the image would be the perfect one when Carl brought it to her. Rick was a toddler in it, sitting on his father's lap on their front porch, both smiling wildly. She adored it as soon as she saw it.

Rick still stood in front of the picture, his hands on his sides as he examined it. Michonne only realised her was crying when she heard him sniff and he ran his hand over his face.

He turned to Carl, "Get over here"

Carl jumped up and joined his father in front of it, "You like it?"

"I love it. I do", He wrapped his arms around Carl and kissed his head, "Thank you so much son"

"Your welcome dad", Carl sounded muffled in his father's hold, "But you need to stop or else mom's going to start-"

"Mama's crying!", Judith called, a little panic to her voice.

Michonne was indeed reduced to tears watching the two men in her life. She shook her head as she rubbed Judith's back, "Mama's fine honey"

"Told you", Carl sighed as he broke away from his father.

Michonne moved Judith on to the couch before she stood. Rick laughed as she stepped over to him, taking her in his arms.

"Gross!"

…

"Why are you walking like that?"

Michonne studied Andrea's legs as her friend shuffled in to the room.

"Shane and I thought we'd try something new last night", She strained, "He got a little carried away"

Michonne's lip curled in disgust, "I'm so scared to ask"

"Let's just say that I'm pretty sure it's illegal in some states"

Michonne's mouth fell open, "Oh… you are braver than me"

"Yeah and look at me now", Andrea winced as she sat down gingerly, "Negan's wife get here yet?"

"No, it's still early. We still need to speak to the girlfriend too"

"I heard he's taken a liking to you", Andrea raised her eyebrows at her, "And Rick hasn't killed him yet?"

"Rick would if he could", Michonne smirked as she went through the letters on her desk.

"Nothing is sexier than when your partner is a little jealous"

Michonne's eyes darted up to her.

"Well.. not with you two anyway.. you're both possessive so-"

"I am not possessive", She frowned at her friend as she dropped the letters.

Andrea looked incredulously, "What? Are you being serious?"

"I'm not!"

"Why are you lying? It's me you're talking to!"

"Name one time-"

"Remember when you and Carl came to stay with me all those years ago and we saw him talking to the counter girl and I had to stop you from trying to throw the display perfumes at him?"

Michonne shrugged, "I don't recall-"

"When we met his first girlfriend after you divorced and you acted as if you couldn't hear her?"

She picked the letters back up, "I'm sorry but I feel like you're making things up-"

"Oh of course! I'm making it all up!", Andrea chuckled, "None of that ever happened at all"

"No it didn't", Michonne smiled wickedly as she opened up her mail.

"Michonne? Andrea? Amber's here", Milton announced from the door.

A petite dark haired woman walked into the office, donned in a large fur coat and dark sunglasses, "How you doing?"

"Hello, come take a seat", Michonne stood to shake the woman's hand. She couldn't help but noticed her hands covered in large stoned rings and bracelets.

"Nice to meet you", Andrea shook her hand also, but from her seat.

"So Amber, how are you doing today?", Michonne asked as she looked for her notes.

"Oh gosh", She sighed, her New York accent thick in throat, "I miss my Neggie so much, I just don't know what to do with my self"

Michonne and Andrea nodded sympathetically.

"He calls when he can but he said he has a sheriff over there that's always troubling him!"

Michonne tried to keep her expression neutral, while Andrea snorted a chuckle.

"I'm sure it's nothing personal", Andrea dismissed.

"It better not be! My Neggie's innocent I tell you", the woman pouted her red lips, "We were planning on starting a family soon. Sherry quite smoking and everything, so she can be healthy enough to have a baby"

Michonne winced, "Sherry's… the girlfriend?"

"Yeah", She nodded, "I know some people think it's weird but I love her. She's like my sister-wife"

Michonne and Andrea continued to nod, though they wore teeth baring smiles.

"Well! Let's get started…"

…

"Mama!"

Judith's voice wrung out from inside the car as Michonne approached them, "Hi baby!"

"Hey mom", Carl called half-heartedly from behind his phone.

She climbed in to the passenger seat, "Hey honey"

Rick smiled at her as she got comfortable, "Good day?"

"Yes… but I need to ask a little favour-"

"Hey niece and nephew!", Andrea grinned as she opened the back door. She smirked at Rick, "Happy birthday grandpa"

Rick's smile fell, "What is she doing?"

"Her car wouldn't start, the mechanic took it in so can we drop her at Shane's?", Michonne winced.

"No", He answered flatly, "Get out"

"Thank you Rick!", Andrea was already putting on her seat belt, "You're a life saver"

Rick scowled at her.

"Please", Michonne batted her eyelashes as him as she tilted her head.

His eyes trailed down the length of her, then slowly climbed back up, stopping at her lips, before he shook his head and turned his attentions to the car, "Damn devil"

"Thank you", She smiled.

"I'm loving your little tiara, Ju-Ju bean!", Andrea gasped in the back.

"Thank you! My daddy got it for me", Judith beamed as she carefully touched her new purchase.

Michonne peaked back at her daughter, then at Rick, "She has you wrapped around her-"

"Seems to be a tradition with the women of this family", He countered dryly, still looking out the windshield.

She bit her bottom lip as she considered his theory, then nodded in agreement, "What did you get Carl?"

"Some jeans, some boots…", Carl answered, his eyes glued to his screen.

"Oh good. You needed that stuff", She looked out the windshield.

"Negan's wife tell you anythan' I should know about?", Rick raised an eyebrow as he glanced at her.

She shook her head, "Nothing you haven't heard before. That whole set up with her and the girlfriend is a little… I mean, you know, each to their own but… I think I'd have to kill you"

He frowned, "What? Why?"

"What do you mean why? Why would I let you live if you wanted a girlfriend?", her eyes burned in to the side of his head.

"No, why would you kill me? If you brought a boyfriend home, I'd kill him… then I'd lock you in a tower so you don't do that crap again"

A bashful smile tugged at her lips, "Really?"

Andrea shook her head as she watched their display, then looked at the kids beside her, "I really hope the two of you don't think this is healthy"

Carl smirked, while Judith, stopped examining her tiara to look up at her aunt, wearing a confused expression.

Michonne was looking out the window again when Rick hit the break hard, making them all jerk forward in their seats. She looked out the windshield as she tried to work out what made him stop so suddenly, and she quickly saw why. Sam was stood frozen in the street, with his eyes wide open.

Rick got out of the car, and Michonne followed suit.

"Are you okay Sam?", Michonne asked as she crouched in front of him.

The boy took a moment but he nodded.

"Who are you with?"

He pointed in the direction of the bar, "My-"

"How'd you get out here Sam?", Pete came marching over to them from between two cars.

Michonne rose to her feet and stood in front of the little boy, "You're watching him?"

Pete's head jerked back, as he slowed down, "Excuse me? I don't need to answer to you-"

"But guess who you do need to answer to?", Rick was in front of the man before he could get any further.

Pete snarled at him, "We were crossing the street and he got away from me-"

"He was coming from that direction and you just came from the bar. How does that make sense? Are you even allowed to have him unsupervised?"

"What? Of course I'm allowed to have my son unsupervised! I'm his father!"

"Then what the hell where you doing?", Rick's shoulders squared as he glared at the slightly taller man.

Pete fumed, "Let me get my son and we'll be on our way-"

"No. Call his grandmother, she can come collect him"

"I will drop him back with his grandmother when it's time", Pete spat out.

Michonne could tell by the way Rick unfolded his arms and rested them on his sides that his temper was ready to make an appearance. She took Sam's hand in hers and slowly made her way around the vehicle.

"Pete, I'm gonna ask you one more time, call his grandmother-"

"You think you run this town don't you? You already fucked my wife so what else do you want? Your trying to take my son from me too?"

"You stink of alcohol", Rick's face pinched as the man stepped closer to him, "Get over there and sit on the curb-"

"No! Where's my son?!"

"Hey! Calm down! Your son is over there and my kids are in my car so I'm not having you scare them-"

"Who give a shit about your kids?!"

Rick growled, "I do"

"Well I don't! Now get the hell out of my way-"

Pete tried to walk around Rick, but he grabbed his arm, which caused Pete to swing and punch Rick right in the jaw. Michonne quickly covered Sam's eyes by holding him to her chest, as she knew the little boy was already a sensitive one and she didn't want him to witness his father's pummelling.

Rick caught his footing as he straightened up, rubbing his jaw. He looked up at Pete as he rolled his shoulders back, "Let's go then"

Pete swung again, but Rick was ready for him the second time around and ducked out the way and caught the man by the middle, taking him down to the ground. His fist was almost a blur as he delivered blow after blow to the man's face. Pete tried to grab his neck but his attempts were slowed as he began to lose consciousness.

Michonne didn't know when he'd stop hitting him but she knew a crowd of on lookers where starting to form, "Rick!"

Pete was unconscious but Rick was still in his rage.

"Daddy!"

Rick's final hit lost momentum at the sound of Judith's voice. He looked up at the car and saw Andrea trying to usher the little girl back to her seat. Michonne still held Sam against her, and the little boy didn't seem to fight her.

Rick got off of Pete and spat blood from his mouth on the street. His knuckles where red and his hair fallen in his face as he made his way back over to the car. Carl was attempting to talk to his little sister, as she sat under her godmothers arm.

Michonne looked down at Sam with a sigh, "Let's get you home, honey"


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19:**

 _"You wanna know what else I miss?'_

"You okay sweetie?"

Judith kept her head down as Rick walked in to her bedroom. Michonne signalled for him to take her seat on the bed beside their daughter, as she got up and moved out the way.

Rick sat down cautiously and looked at her with sad eyes, "I'm sorry about today. Daddy shouldn't have hit Sam's dad so much"

Michonne cleared her throat.

"At all", Rick quickly corrected, "Daddy shouldn't have hit him at all"

"Why did he hit you?", Her voice was quiet and full of concern.

Rick sighed, "He was upset and he didn't know how to handle it"

"I don't like people hitting you daddy", She looked up at him with sad eyes.

He scooped her up in his arms, "Neither do I but sometimes… people don't think and they do silly things like that"

She frowned at him, "I don't like that"

"Don't you worry about that, okay?"

"But what if somebody bigger than you hits you?"

Rick rubbed her back, "Then daddy will call mama"

Judith began to smile and Rick's felt relief wash over him.

"Is that why you were upset? You thought that Sam's daddy was beating me up?"

She nodded, her little twists bouncing on her head.

"Oh Judy, daddy's fine okay? Look, not a scratch on me", Rick closed his eyes and showed her his face.

Her eyes scanned over him, then stopped, "What's that on your hands?"

"Daddy fell", He answered quickly, "Come on, time for bed now, okay?"

"Okay"

Rick swung her into bed, earning him a giggle that sounded like music to his ears, "Goodnight my sweet little baby angel"

"Night daddy. Night mama"

"Night baby", Michonne chimed as she went over to kiss her on the head.

They left the little girl to sleep and both sighed when they closed the door behind them.

"Come on. Now we have to talk to Carl", She hissed.

Rick frowned, but still followed her along the hall "I think he's used to seeing me beat people up"

Michonne glared at him from over her shoulder, "That's nothing to be proud of you jackass, and I want to talk to him about Lori-"

He grabbed her arm, "Wait, what? Why?"

She frowned at him, "Because she wants to take him from us? Or did you forget?"

"We should wait. It might be all talk and I don't want him fretting over nothing-"

"Do you think it's all talk? Didn't she used to take Shane to court over Milly for fun?"

"Well money's obviously tight for her so she might not be a position to follow through with the threat. One things she loves to do is lie and this might be one of them, so let's just wait and see. If we get the court papers then we'll tell him"

She stared at him as she thought about it. He could tell she didn't want to risk it coming out another way but he didn't want his son worrying about empty threats either. She finally nodded, "Fine. We'll do it your way-"

"Our way. We're in this together right?"

She sighed, "Yeah. We are"

Carl's bedroom door opened, and he stopped at the sight of his parents, his eyes narrowing, "What are you doing?"

"Uh, we were just-", Rick turned to get help from Michonne, when he heard their bedroom door close and saw she had gone, "Damn devil"

Carl frowned at him, and looked down at his fists, "How's your hands…"

Rick looked down at them himself, "They're fine… listen, do you need me to talk to you about what happened today?"

Carl shrugged, "Do you want me to need you to talk to me?"

"I don't need you to but if you want to then I can"

His son leaned on his door frame, "Well, I'm pretty used to seeing you get into fights"

"That's what I said", Rick muttered as he shook his head.

"Which I don't think is something to be proud of"

Rick side eyed him.

"Sometimes I get it… sometimes I don't.. but that's life right?"

Rick nodded at his son's analysis of his escapades, glad he didn't seem to negatively affected by his behaviour, "Yeah… I guess so".

He left his son to her up to his own devices, while he went to his own bedroom, where Michonne was getting changed for bed.

"Happy birthday to me…", He sang with a grin as he watched her pull her skirt down, "Happy birthday to me-"

"I'm tired", She grimaced as she put her skirt on the vanity chair, "It's been a long day and I'm sorry"

His face fell, "But It's my birthday"

"Let's lay down and talk then"

His gazed at her round, pert behind hiding under her shirt and he sighed, "You really are pure evil"

"See! I actually miss you calling me the devil", She smiled as she unbuttoned her shirt.

"I can't hear you anymore", He admitted as he imagined she was stripping for him.

"Hey! Focus!"

"Fine", He groaned as he began to change himself, "What are we talking about?"

"Decorating-"

He let out a loud, dramatic moan as he sat down on the bed, "Of all thangs-"

"It still needs to be done so stop it, you bear"

"Do what you want. There you go, that's my input-"

"The room, Rick"

He pulled his t-shirt over his head and looked over his shoulder at her. He could tell by the way her tone changed that it was bothering her, "Whatever you wanna do"

She shrugged, "I don't know…"

"We'll leave that how it is then. When we figure out what we want to do, then we'll do it"

She nodded, pulling her knight dress on.

He frowned as his eyes sailed across the room, "We didn't give him a name?"

She sat down on the bed with a sigh, "We didn't"

"Do you want to? You think that might help?"

She shook her head, "No. I don't think it would. I don't think I want to either… it doesn't hurt as much when I pretend it was one big...nightmare"

His eyes closed for a moment, before looking at her back again. He didn't want her to stop talking to him about it, as this was the most she had said unprompted to him.

"He would have looked like you. More like… you and Carl…", her fingers gently traced the patterns on the sheets as she spoke, "I think that's what made it… it made it worse. It was as if I can just imagine what he'd look like as he…Do you blame yourself?"

Rick's gaze fell to her hand, "I'll always blame myself. I should have- I just think that's somethan' we'll both feel guilty for. I know you still blame yourself and… I wish you wouldn't but… it's somethan' we can't help but feel"

She slowly nodded, "You're right about that"

He stood up and grabbed his sweatpants at the end of the bed, pulling them on before climbing back into the bed, "Come here"

She took a moment, but she joined him, laying in his arms in a comfortable silence.

…

"Got this for you, there's a thousand there"

Shane handed Rick the envelope and Rick chucked it on his desk, "Thanks"

"No problem…", Shane hovered around and Rick stared at him, "Look, I heard what happened to your dad and I'm sorry about that. I know how it feels to lose a parent and it don't matter how old you are, still hurts like hell"

Rick looked elsewhere, "Yeah, well thank. I appreciate that"

"I know your dad didn't like me-"

"He hated you. My mother still does", Rick agreed.

Shane pursed his lips as he nodded, "Yeah… I get why… if a man ever did Milly what I did to you, I'd hate him too"

Rick sighed as he scratched his brow with his thumb, "Yeah. Well, then you understand"

"I still had a lot of respect for your him. He was like a second father to me when we were kids, both your parents were. And I never got to apologise for letting them down like that… so I'd appreciate it if you let me put some flowers on his grave… the least I can do"

Rick looked up to the ceiling as he considered the man's request, "Yeah, sure, I'll give you the details, you can go do that"

"Thanks man", Shane turned to leave the room.

"You know what Lori's trying to do?", Rick called out before he could leave.

Shane turned back with a frown, "No? What?"

He sat forward and rested his elbows on his desk, "She said she wants to take us to court for Carl, didn't know if you knew?"

Shane's eyes rolled closed and he shook his head, "She used to talk about it but… I told y'all about that when I first got here, she would say she wanted him for Milly…"

"Well now she wants him all to herself, I guess"

"I can try to talk to her but, you know how she is. It's probably not even about Carl. She always has some kind of alternative motive"

Rick frowned as he tried to wonder what else it could be about, "I don't even know what else this could be about"

Daryl walked into the room and both men immediately noticed his black eye as looked up from his papers.

"What the hell happened to you?", Rick questioned as he squinted at his best friend.

Daryl sighed as he sat down, "Lily"

"Lily? Lily, what?"

"We were play fighting, she caught me good with her knee"

Shane bit his lips together as he turned and walked out the room, while Rick still frowned at him, "My little forty pound goddaughter did that with her knee?"

"She did. Her mother laughed in my face, told me that's what I get for rough housing", Daryl snorted.

Rick stared at him a bit longer before he began to laugh, "I'm sorry, but it's just she's such a sweetheart"

"Yeah but she has her father's fighting spirit"

"More like her mother's", Rick muttered between chuckles.

"Very funny", Daryl sent him a little glare.

"Hey Rick", Leon appeared at the door, "Thomas is asking to speak to you"

Rick's eyebrows shot up, and he looked at Daryl, "Alright, come on"

Daryl followed Rick out the room and Leon lead them to the meeting room. The younger male had refused to speak to anyone since Negan's arrival, so Rick was very interested in what he had to say.

He was sat with his arms folded across his chest when they walked in and quickly perked up at the sight of them.

"Go ahead", Rick said as he took a seat in front of him, "Talk"

"Well I wanna make sure I get a good deal out of this-"

"Yeah yeah, anonymity and all that. Go"

Thomas shifted uneasily in his seat, "There's gonna be a drop. We always have a big drop about once a month, supplies and gear and all, at a warehouse just outside town. Looks like an old steel factory on the outside but it has a basement-"

"Didn't someone check that out?", Rick looked back at Leon and Daryl.

"We did, didn't find nothing", Leon shrugged.

"Nah, the basement you can't get in to through the main building, it's got its own entrance", Thomas shook his head as he explained, "It's usually done in the morning, about one or two. It's the guys that work directly underneath Negan that make the drop"

Rick sat forward as he stared the other man down, "You have any way to prove that?"

"The cars. The same cars they use are the same ones he has at his 'used car lot'. He sells them on right after he uses them"

Rick bit his lip as he was finally grateful for some more information, "Alright, let's get ready to catch them then"

…

"I'm gonna be home late"

"How late?"

Rick ran his tongue around his tooth as he thought, "Probably tomorrow morning"

"Excuse me?!", He moved the phone from his ear as Michonne screeched at him.

"We got a lead and I have to be here. Everyone does. We catch them in action and we have a solid case"

She was silent for a moment and Rick was sure she was probably narrowing her eyes at the phone, "Fine"

"It's just for tonight. I might even be able to get home earlier if all goes to plan"

"Yeah yeah"

"You gonna miss me?"

"No."

He bit his lip so she didn't hear him chuckle, his eyes scanning the scene out his windshield, "Don't lie to me. I'll miss you"

"You better miss me"

"You wanna know what else I miss?"

"I bet I can guess", He could tell she was starting to smile.

"It's been a while…"

"Two weeks Rick-"

"Three. Try three weeks", He mended flatly.

"Fine. Three weeks. But it's okay because we're starting to work out our differences-"

"I wanna start working somethan' else out", He smirked.

She giggled, "Rick, seriously. I've missed being able to sit down and talk to you about anything-"

"I've missed that too and I'm glad we're moving in the right direction… but I've also missed when you used to sit on my face-"

She squealed, "I will see you when you get home. Whenever that is"

"Fine… but you better not have anythan' on when I get in"

"And what if I do? Am I going to get in trouble?"

Rick brought his balled up hand to his mouth and bit his index finger as he tried not to let her sensual voice awaken him too much, "You have no idea"

"Goodbye Grimes!"

Rick stared out the windshield again, trying all that he could to rid himself of the visuals that plagued his mind in the last few moments.

"You coming?", Leon knocked on the window, tearing him from his thoughts.

"I hope so", Rick groaned to himself, before opening the car door, "Yeah, let's just check it out. Look over the area, then we'll set up watch points. Thomas said they usually come from the city so that means their coming in from that direction, so we need to block that entrance as soon as they're here"

"Got it", Leon nodded.

Rick looked around the abandoned lot and sighed, "It's gonna be a long night"

…

"It's weird, you're talking about some of your most intimate problems, with a complete stranger sitting there"

"I don't think I could do it", Daryl's lip curled at the thought, "I don't even like Lily around when we argue"

Rick rubbed the back of his neck as he looked out his window, "It takes some getting used to. The guy, Arthur, he's alright but… he's an annoying little punk too"

Daryl snickered, "Well at least y'all are playing nice now"

"Yeah… did I tell you she's hitting me again?", Rick smiled as he thought about it.

Daryl shook his head as he chuckled, "I'm happy for you both. So what's this mean for the wedding?"

Rick's smile fell, "One hurdle at a time now"

"We have two dark Cadillac's and a white van coming down your way fella's"

The two men perked up in their seats as they looked from the radio to the windshield. The three vehicles in question appeared further down the road, pulling turning on to the grassland to get to the factory.

"Everybody in positon", Rick almost whispered in to the receiver.

"We got a clear view", Shane replied, "Two males in the first car, three in the second and two in the van, over"

"They're probably armed watch yourselves"

"We've blocked them in, over", Rosita informed.

"We moving in?", Daryl glanced over armed Rick, "They probably won't wanna be out here too long"

Rick watched as they figures began to remove items from the van. He gave Daryl a single nod as he spoke in to the receiver, "Alright, move!"

The two men climbed out of their squad car, and ran low towards the factory with their guns low. Two other cars came from either side, while Shane and Morgan appeared on foot.

"Freeze!", Shane bellowed at five of the seven men as they came out of the basement.

Three did as they were told while the two in the back tried to run. Rick and Shane quickly sprinted after them. They chased the two suspects behind the building, where one of them tripped over a tire that lay disguised in the high grass.

"Go on I got him!", Shane instructed as he all but body slammed the man back to the ground.

Rick had his sights set on the last man as he kept running, but then he turned around and fired two shots in Rick's direction. He felt two pulsing sensations through his body but he shook the feeling off as he focused on his target again.

"Son of a bitch-", He raised his gun and aimed low, shooting at the man's legs. The suspect fell to the ground yelling in pain, howling as he rolled around in the grass. Rick lunged for him, "Did you really just shoot at me you piece of shit?"

Rick cocked his arm back, as he channelled all his strength to punch the man. The first two punches landed perfectly, but he missed the third, almost falling on top of the man.

"Rick! You got him?", Rosita appeared with her gun lowered at the unconscious man.

Rick sat up sluggishly and looked down at the man, noticing the blood on his shirt. His eyes dropped to his chest as he ran his hand over himself, and removed it to see his hands covered in the substance.

Rosita gasped, "We need an ambulance! Quick!"

"He did shoot me", He felt himself getting angry but he didn't have the energy to do anything about it.

"Rick! Can you hear me?! Lay back down!"

"Shit", He breathed, feeling tired all of a sudden, "Don't tell Michonne"


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20:**

 _'Stop_ '

"Mama? Where's daddy?"

Michonne squinted at her daughter as she tried to focus, the morning sun shining a little too brightly in her bedroom, "He's at work honey, he'll be back soon"

Judith pursed her little lips as she stared at her mother.

"He'll be home soon, okay?"

The little girl seemed to take that last remark seriously, and finally gave her a nod of approval.

Michonne sat up with a groan as she stretched, knowing both her children would be looking to her with empty stomachs soon, "Let's get breakfast started"

Judith skipped ahead of her, and Michonne reminisced about the days when she had so much energy so early in the morning.

After grabbing her dressing gown and heading to Carl's room to wake him from his apparent hibernation, she went downstairs to prepare breakfast for them all.

"Are we going to see Gerald soon?", Judith asked as she spun on the stool.

"Sure honey, we can if you want", Michonne answered as she cracked an egg with the back of a butter knife.

"Where's Gerald's mama?"

Michonne froze, not expecting her daughter to ask such a question. She turned to face Judith, "Gerald's mama is with Grandma Genie and Grandpa Will, honey"

Judith spun slower, "Oh… she's dead?"

Michonne nearly grimaced at her bluntness, "She died a long time ago when Gerald was little like you"

Judith stopped spinning, "Is my baby brother with them too?"

Her breath hitched in her throat, but she still nodded.

Judith's eyes dropped to the floor as she started spinning again, "Okay"

Michonne turned back to the counter feeling a little saddened about the turn of the conversation, but still tried to perk her daughter up by mentioning her favourite person, "What should we put in daddy's omelette then?"

Judith's eyes lit up as she faced her, "Daddy likes peppers and onions!"

"He does doesn't he? And what else?"

"Um… he likes French toast and he likes bacon and he likes fries with cheese on them and he likes-"

"That's my girl!", Michonne stopped her, knowing she'd go on until she was blue in the face. She muttered to herself as she turned back to the counter, "I'm here cooking it all but I'm somehow I'm invisible"

Carl slunk into the kitchen with a very tired expression, heading straight over to Judith to join her.

"Mama's making omelettes", Judith informed.

"Yum! I heard something about French toast too…", Carl peaked over his shoulder at his mother.

"You did. Judith was telling me all the things your dad likes to eat", Michonne ignored his subtle request.

"You know what I like Judy?", Carl probed.

Judith's brow furrowed as she thought, "Um… you like…"

Carl shook his head with disappointment, "After all the time we've spent together"

"Cherries!", Judith exclaimed happily.

"Close… but no, I don't like Cherries… at all... in fact, dad loves cherries"

"Oh…", Judith looked around for a moment, before continuing to spin on her stool.

Michonne chuckled to herself as she watched their interactions. As jealous as she was of her daughters bond with her father, it warmed her heart all the same.

After having breakfast together and dressing for the day, Michonne found herself checking the time more often as she wondered where Rick was. She was tempted to call him but she didn't want to disturb, and he would usually call on his way home.

"Come on, Carl! I don't want to have to fight anyone at the grocery store today!", Michonne called up to her son from the bottom of the stairs.

Judith's eyes widened at her mother's words.

"I'm kidding! Mama's just kidding honey", Michonne quickly reassured, "We don't do that, it's not nice"

Judith tore her little judgmental look away from her mother, and Michonne could have groaned. She was about to call for Carl again when she still didn't hear him making his way out of his bedroom, but she was distracted by the doorbell.

As soon as she saw Daryl, she noted how tired he looked, and how dishevelled his uniform was. She didn't know why she started to feel herself panic, but something about the family friend's arrival made her feel uneasy.

"Hey 'Chonne", He rasped, his voice low.

"What is it Daryl?", She asked, her eyes searching him for answers, feeling even stranger using his first name.

Daryl winced at her, "We had a little accident"

Her face tightened as her heart began to thump in her chest, "What?"

"...I wanna take y'all over to the hospital-"

"Tell me, Daryl", She tried to keep her tone calm, but it was getting difficult for her to breath and listen at the same time.

"...He got shot, we were just outside town at a…"

She could see Daryl's mouth moving, but all she could hear was the blood rushing through her ears. The only reason she didn't slap herself awake was because she couldn't move. She felt routed to the wood floors beneath her heels. The sun was shining even brighter than before, without a cloud in sight.

"The surgery went well… he's stable. He'll be out for a little while but they're confident he'll pull through…"

Michonne stared at him for a few seconds after he finished speaking, then turned behind her to see both Carl and Judith, stood by the stairs wearing confused expressions.

She inhaled, summoning a strength that she always kept on reserve, "We need to go to the hospital"

…

"Glad I didn't leave just yet. Wouldn't have got back here quick enough"

Michonne gazed at the wall of seats in opposite her, only paying half of her attention to Jeffrey.

"She really wore herself out didn't she? Poor thang cried herself to sleep"

Her eyes rolled down to Judith's face, who was indeed sleeping peacefully on her mother's lap, cradled in her arms. She had a heart wrenching tantrum when she was told they couldn't see her father just yet, and it took, what felt like an eternity for her to calm down.

"You want me to hold her? You can go get some fresh air or somethan', maybe a coffee?"

Michonne finally looked at him and sighed, "I'm fine. Thank you".

He nodded as he sat back in his seat, huffing as his eyes roamed around the near empty waiting room, "They were gonna tell you… he asked them not to but… they wanted to wait"

She ground her teeth together, "I don't doubt that at all"

"You know how my little brother is. If he could have taken those bullets and came home the same day, he would have acted like everythan' was fine…"

She slowly nodded in agreement.

"...He fell off a swing set when he was about ten, maybe eleven, broke his ankle and you know we didn't find out until three days later?"

Michonne raised an eyebrow at him, quite shocked at the story.

"Yep. He hobbled along on that broken ankle for nearly three whole days because he didn't want mom to get upset. The only way we even found out was because he was wearing these heavy jeans in the middle of summer to cover the swelling"

Michonne shook her head as she pursed her lips, "Oh, Rick"

"Indeed", Jeffrey smirked, dragging his hand over his face, "Don't be too tough on him when he wakes up, he just doesn't want you to worry…"

Michonne's head turned eerily slow to face Jeffrey.

He narrowed her eyes at her, "You're gonna kill him aren't you?"

"I am", She admitted easily.

Jeffrey nodded, "That's fine"

"Hey aunt Michonne"

Gerald came in, followed by a gloomy looking Carl. Under different circumstances, she would admire the two boys for their likeness, and how close they were despite only ever seeing each other every few months.

"Hey honey", She greeted as he took a seat in front of her.

"Let me take her mom", Carl offered as he took a seat beside her.

Michonne wanted to protest, as she was usually third in line when it came to who her daughter sought comfort from, but she obliged, allowing her son to take her off her lap.

"Grandma's on the phone to some lady… Wendy?", Gerald squinted at his father as he tried to recall the information.

"That's my aunt, so your grand-aunt I guess… she's your grandfather's little sister", Jeffrey explained.

Gerald nodded, "Oh okay"

"Hey guys", Andrea called quietly as she walked in the room, her eyes darting across all the faces, "Got here as soon as I could… Shane told me what happened"

Michonne felt only the smallest bit of relief at having her best friend there, as she knew she'd help her juggle everything.

"When can we see him?", She asked as she took a seat beside Gerald, "I just sent Daryl home, told him I'd call if we hear anything"

"Soon." Michonne answered softly.

"Good... If they want him up sooner than they should send me in, I'm sure if I whispered in his ear that I'm moving in with you guys he'd wake up to strangle me"

Jeffrey snickered, "The two of you still fighting? After all these years?"

"He loves me really", Andrea teased, "He's like the fairy grandfather I never had"

Michonne would have laughed at her friend's humorous comment but she wasn't in the mood to anything past a small smile.

"You okay?", She almost whispered to Carl.

He nodded, his hair only allowing the tiniest glimpse of his eyes, "Yeah. Just want to see him"

"You will. You and Judith can go in first"

"Shouldn't you go first?"

"I'll go in straight after you two"

"Okay mom"

…

Michonne's stomach was in knots as she stood outside Rick's hospital room. They were allowing immediate family members to see him, and she made sure to go last, purely because she wasn't ready to see him yet. She had managed to hold it all together for Carl and Judith, his mother and the rest of their friends that came by, but she knew as soon as she laid eyes on him she'd crumble.

She opened the door quickly, as to not allow herself any more time to back out of it. The room was dim, and she could hear the heart monitor before she could even see it. She stepped in the room slowly, only able to see the foot of the bed as the curtain was almost drawn. Her heart began to beat louder in her ears, but she pushed on. His torso came into view and the knots in her own stomach tightened. His chest bandaged up, with tubes poking out from all directions.

She brought her hand up to cover her mouth in a bid to silence her sobs as she saw his face. He had two tiny tubes in his nose, as well as a larger tube sticking out of her mouth.

She almost doubled over as she looked away for a moment, trying to gather herself before she got any closer. She sniffed, then released a shaky breath, straightening herself up.

She bit her bottom lip in a bid to stop it quivering as she made her way over to his bed. Her hand slipped into his as she took a seat on the bed itself, facing towards him.

"If you can hear me, then I want you to know, that you are an asshole", She hissed at him, "It was only a week ago that I told you what losing you would mean to me, and you decide to go and put yourself in the front line"

She watched him with angry glistening eyes, his chest rose and fell slowly, but that was the only movement he made.

"You don't get to leave me. You don't. You said I belong with you and that means you belong with me, and you need to remember that! I am not just yours! You are mine too and the same way you wouldn't want me putting myself in any danger is the same way you have to be more careful! Why the hell weren't you wearing a vest, you moron?! You're not invincible! You think you are but you're not! You can die too and I swear to God, if you pull a stunt like this again then I will show the devil!"

She drew a long calming breath as she sat up and wiped her eyes, sniffing as she looked to the ceiling.

"I want to marry you, I want to have more kids with you. I want us to have a dozen grandkids that we spoil rotten and I want us get old and share a hearing aid. That's what I want. You promised to always give me what I want, so you have to give me that"

She leaned forward, careful not to touch anything important, and kissed him on the tip of his nose.

"You better wake up"

…

"Have you eaten anything?"

Michonne nodded as she looked at Sasha, "Yeah… Earlier. If I turned Susan down one more time she would have held me down"

Sasha smirked, "Ain't that the truth"

They both stood outside the quiet waiting room while others took their turn seeing Rick. Michonne was tired, but she didn't plan on leaving anytime soon.

"How long do they think he'll be out for?"

"They said they'll bring him around tomorrow morning. He might need further surgery to remove a few more shards but it's not something they're worried about right now"

Sasha nodded as she crossed her arms, "Alright"

"Ladies"

They both turned in the direction of the familiar southern voice. Shane approached them cautiously, his deputy hat in his hands.

"Hey", They both greeted quietly.

"How's he doing?", Shane queried, resting his hands at his sides.

"Good", Michonne answered, "No infection or anything…"

Shane nodded, "I wouldn't expect any different. You know that son of a gun was still trying to fight after it all?"

"I can believe it. He was probably mad"

"He was", Shane smirked, rubbing the back of his neck, "He told me about… Lori"

Sasha pushed away from the wall and turned to the waiting room door, "I'll just be in here"

"Alright", Michonne acknowledged, before turning back to Shane.

"I think even you know how she works by now…", Shane offered, "She gets something in her mind and she won't let go of it… she honestly believes that she's done nothing wrong, to anyone. If anythan' she feels like you owe her somethan' and… I just-"

"Shane. Don't worry about it. I'll deal with her if I have to", She insisted firmly, "She can daydream all she wants but the fact is, she's done more harm than good, and Carl knows that"

He nodded as his eyes slid away from her.

She sighed as she decided to change the topic, "How's Milly?"

He brought his gaze back to her, "She's all good. She's up with her cousins right now so…"

"Okay… well maybe when she's back we can arrange something… the kids haven't seen each other in a while with everything that's gone on…"

"Yeah, nah I understand… I don't want to push anythan' and I know you'd probably want to talk it over with Rick but, maybe they can have a sleepover sometime? Milly will be starting at Judith's school this year and it would be nice if… she feels like she's got someone, you know?… she's moved around a lot so she hasn't always clicked with other kids…"

Michonne felt for the little girl, "Yeah, you know what, that sounds like a good idea. We can sort that out"

He smiled, "Great"

…

"I swear, as soon as you get home we are going shopping for some new clothes for you"

Michonne sighed as she went through the duffle bag of belonging she brought for Rick. She moved around his bed quietly as the heart monitor rung out through the room.

"I don't mind the checked button downs but, I found one too many in that closet of yours"

She had gotten used to speaking to him while he was still asleep. The doctors were able to wake him that morning, but informed her that he would still be drifting in and out consciousness. She had yet to see him awake but was thankful to hear that he had.

"Your mom is cooking up a storm for when you wake up… my dad too… Jeffrey took the kids out today, he's probably heading home with them now actually", She paused her movements to glance at her watch, "I think Judith's face will be the first one you see tomorrow… she's been a handful since you've been in here…"

She took out the magazines she brought for him and put them on the table at the bottom of his bed. Her eyes darted up to his face, and while he looked a little better, especially with the tube removed from his mouth, she still couldn't look at him for too long.

"Carl's been… a lifesaver. He's so calm and understanding sometimes… he gets that from me", She smirked, taking his toiletries to the bathroom, "You're mom's forcing me to take a day off soon so she'll be doing all this… I think she has a few choice words for you herself… and I talked to Shane the other day, about the kids having a sleepover. I told him it sounded like a good idea so we can argue about that later"

She walked back into main room with a sigh, dropping the duffel bag on the wide window ledge. Her eyes sailed around the room as she wondered what else she had to do, resting her hands on her hips. She didn't know what it was that made her look at him again, but she did, and her heart nearly jumped out of her chest.

He was watching her with hooded, tired eyes. He lazily tried to lift his hand to her but she shook her head as she joined him on the bed.

"Don't start any of that now", She insisted with a sigh, her eyes welling up for the countless time, "Just rest"

He groaned as he tried to shift in the bed, his face pinching in discomfort.

"Hey! None of that either", She warned, as she sniffed, wiping her eyes with the back of her thumb.

He focused on her, squeezing her hand gently with the hand she held, and managing to croak out, "Stop"

Relief swept over her as she leaned forward, placing her hand on his cheek, and he turned to his head a fraction to kiss her palm.


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21:**

 _'What are you smiling about then?'_

Rick was in a horrible mood. He was in pain and was only able to sit or lay in one position, which made him even more uncomfortable, and he was still very angry about being shot. He also had never liked having to stay in the hospital for what he considered to be unnecessary amount of time. The nurses would come in and fuss with him, annoying him further, which effectively made him a particularly difficult patient.

The feeling of uselessness swarmed him. He would prefer to be the one handing out the care than receiving it. It wasn't something he handled well, and he would have preferred to be at home looking after his family.

"Good morning, Sheriff"

Rick watched the young woman make her way around to the monitors beside him with a clip chart in her hand.

"And how are we doing? Are you going to eat something for us today?"

Rick snarled at her, and she sighed, turning her attentions back to her task. While he knew she was just trying to do her job, he didn't care in that moment. He had no interest in being friendly with them, he just wanted them to leave him alone.

He heard the door open, then close, and Michonne appeared, improving his mood substantially.

She greeted the nurse as she walked around the bed to join him at his bedside, "What's wrong?"

His eyes darted to the nurse in the room, and he raised an eyebrow at her.

"Stop it", Michonne seemed to understand his silent answer, and waved a dismissive hand at him, "Andrea's bringing the kids down a little later. Your mom and Jeffrey will be back down too"

He blinked at her.

"I was just telling the sheriff that we hope he'll eat today. It'll be his first solids in a while", The nurse explained to Michonne.

Michonne glanced down at Rick, "He'll eat. I promise"

He rolled his eyes at her, and she whacked his leg. The nurse winced at the two of them, before smiling awkwardly and heading out the room.

"Stop being difficult you jackass", She breathed through a clenched jaw, "If you want to get out of here sooner then you listen to them"

"No.", He rasped, his throat feeling unnaturally dry.

She grabbed a bottle of water from her purse and opened it for him, cupping his chin as he all but drained it, "Don't you dare tell me no"

He felt much better after drinking something, "No."

She put the lid back on the bottle with an attitude, "You're being an ass-"

"Where's Daryl?"

"I don't know, but he'll probably stop by-"

"The guy?"

She released a low, almost feral growl, as she put the bottle down on the table across his bed, "Don't worry about that now. He'll update you when he gets here"

He pursed his lips in annoyance, but didn't say anything else about it.

"He said he'd handle everything at work… I'm probably going to have to hand Negan's case over to Andrea…", Her eyes wandered up and down the wall behind his bed as she relayed the information, "I might need to take up your mom's offer so I can sort all that out...We'll push the decorating back again-"

"I had a dream… you were shouting at me", He announced, not listening to her list of tasks.

"It probably wasn't a dream", She rose an eyebrow at him, "I did shout at you a couple days ago"

He frowned at her, "Why?"

"Because I was angry at you"

His expression didn't change, "Why?"

"Because you should have been more careful"

He wished he was in a position to throw his hands up in the air, "He shot me-"

"I know he did", She mocked, "But you should have taken precautions-"

He groaned as he tried to sit up straight.

"Hey! Knock it off", She warned.

"You're blaming me?", He breathed through a clenched jaw.

"I said you should have been more careful. That's it"

He snorted as he rolled his eyes, sitting back in the bed. The last thing he needed was to argue with her because it would take his bad mood to new heights.

She straightened up as she adjusted her locks into a higher ponytail. The only reason he focused on what she was doing was because something caught his eye on her hand. Her finger to be more specific. She was wearing her ring.

"Let me see"

She looked at him as she finished tying her hair, frowning at his request.

"Give me your hand"

She caught on, and softened only a little, but still held out her hand to him. He examined her slender hands, almost tutting at her manicured nails, but her focus was on the ring.

"This had to happen...for you to put it back on?"

She nearly pulled her hand away, but he held on to it, "I know why I put it back on"

"Tell me why"

"I already did"

He squinted at her, "When I was out?"

She blinked at him, her attitude making an appearance again.

"Tell me why. Now"

"So I get all your stuff if you put yourself in harm's way again", She raised an eyebrow at him.

"You would have got it all anyway", He knew she was being facetious but he also knew she didn't usually like to talk about things of that nature, so he seized the opportunity.

The cracks started to show, and her hand relaxed in his, "I told you that I do want to marry you again, and I want more children with you… and I want us to share a hearing aid when we're old"

He stroked her fingers with his thumb as his heart swelled, "That's what you want"

"It is"

"Alright then"

…

"Daddy you said you'd call mama if someone bigger than you tried to hit you"

Rick tried not to chuckle at his daughter's serious expression, "I know, but it was late… and mama was probably sleeping"

"You shouldn't have been out late daddy"

His frowned as he shook his head, "You're telling me off too?"

She stared him down.

"Alright, fine, I'm sorry sweetie"

Judith watched him for a few moments before nodding, "It's okay"

Rick couldn't believe he had to apologise for being in the position that he was, but he was willing to do anything to make his daughter happy, especially after hearing how upset she was.

"So how long will you be here?", Carl asked as he sat forward in the seat.

"Hopefully not long", Rick answered truthfully.

"Probably another week", Michonne answered realistically.

Rock groaned at the thought, ready to dismiss the idea, when the door opened, and in stepped Spencer, much to his dismay.

"How are you all doing?", He smiled, his eyes sailing across them all.

"Good", They all chirped, minus Rick of course.

"How about you sheriff?", the younger man stood end of his bed.

"Fine. When can I go home?", Rick tilted his head at him.

Spencer frowned, "Well you took a bullet to your chest and your hip-"

"I'm aware of that"

"We like to wait a week so we can check for any signs of infection-"

"Aware of that too"

"We think the remaining shards won't affect your quality of life in anyway so we won't need to do any further surgery-"

"So when can I leave?", Rick's tone dropped a few octaves as he dragged the question out.

"He's just a little homesick", Michonne inserted, sending Rick a cautionary glance.

"I understand, and we usually like to monitor people at the beginning of their recovery, making sure their heading in the right direction before we send them home. You haven't given us any cause for concern so I don't expect to see you around for too long", Spencer gave Michonne a friendly smile at the end of his smile and Rick was willing to suffer the discomfort from climbing out of bed to hit him.

"Well then that's great news", She raised her eyebrows at Rick in a matter of fact way.

He snorted.

"I was actually hoping to have a word with you outside, if you don't mind", Spencer motioned to the door as he looked at Michonne.

"What about?", Rick cocked his head at him, his eyes squinting.

"That's perfectly fine", Michonne insisted, her eyes looking at Rick with disbelief while she headed to the door.

Spencer looked between them nervously, before following her out, "I'll just be a moment".

Rick wanted to yank the man back into the room by his shirt collar.

"Where did mama go?", Judith asked, finally coming up for air from her father's phone.

Rick smiled at his daughter as he got an idea, "She just stepped out for a minute… in fact why don't you go and-"

"Dad", Carl deadpanned, giving his father an unimpressed look.

Rick pursed his lips at his son's good moral compass. He didn't like Spencer, and he had come to that conclusion the first time he met him. He knew he had a tendency to behave irrationally when it came to Michonne and other males but he didn't care. He smirked to himself when he realised that Michonne suffered from the same problem.

"Is it okay if Lauren comes with us tomorrow?"

Rick tore himself from his thoughts to look at Carl, "Uh, yeah sure, that's fine son… when is she leaving?"

"Wednesday", Carl almost muttered.

Rick felt for him, "Sorry we won't be able to have dinner with her and her parents"

Carl shook his head, "Don't worry about it dad. I mean, getting shot is a pretty good reason not to"

"Yeah, I guess it is"

"Are you gonna sleep here some more daddy?", Judith questioned as her eyes roamed the bed she slept on.

"Just a little more sweetie", He sighed stroking her hair back from her face.

"Can I sleep in your bed at home then?"

"Of course you can", He smiled, "You can guard it for me, okay? Make sure no one else tries to sneak in there while I'm gone"

Judith giggled, "What if Carl wants to sleep in your bed?"

"Carl can but I think he's a little too big, don't you think?"

Judith looked at her brother with calculating eyes, "He can sleep in my bed"

Carl snickered, "Thanks Judy but I think I'm too big for your bed too. I'll guard the door instead"

Judith seemed content with that imaginary plan of action, beaming at her brother.

Michonne came back in the room with a faint smile on her face as if she had been laughing. Rick's eyes narrowed at her.

"Oh stop it, you bear", She waved a hand dismissively at him as she resumed her previous position, reading through his care plan at the table.

"What did he say?", Rick frowned.

"He was just telling me about their plans for you and how I can help make things run a little smoother", She shrugged, her eyes scanning over the page.

"What are you smiling about then?"

She smirked, "I told him they can sedate you when necessary"

Rick's gaze darted over to his son when he heard a chuckle burst from his lips. Carl gave him a sympathetic look when he realised he was caught.

"Very funny"

…

"You need to get your strength back. Greens will do that for you"

Rick could quite easily hold his hands up and admit that he appreciated the fact that he and his soon to be father in law again, had mended their relationship. He had always admired the older man as he was very family orientated, and he would try his best to make them all happy.

That being said, the man could be determined and Rick was in no position to eat any more greens.

"Donald's right. You need to eat up", His mother agreed from the seat beside him.

"I don't think that's physically possible", Rick shifted uncomfortably in his bed, his stomach full.

"Oh please. You and your brother's legs are hollow. Always eating somethan'..."

"I've always noticed that too", Michonne's father nodded.

Rick between them both incredulously, "What? Hold on, have neither of you met your grandson? Carl? He's like a garbage truck-"

"That's different. My grandbaby is growing. He needs all that food-", His mother quickly defended.

"A whole large pizza? He needs all that?"

"He burns it off skateboarding", Her father insisted.

Rick soon realised he wouldn't win this discussion, as most grandparents looked at their grandchild through rose tinted glasses.

"Your brothers outside, I'm gonna quickly get him to take me to the store so I can get you one of those healthy drinks your Aunt Wendy was telling me about", His mother hopped out of her seat with her phone in her hand, and paced to the door, "I'll be back shortly"

"Alright", Rick sighed, dreading what she'd bring him back.

Michonne's father walked around the bed and took the vacant seat with a blank expression.

Rick stared back at the man.

"How are you and my daughter doing now?"

"We're doing great"

"Really?"

"No problems at all"

"Would she agree with that?"

Rick tensed, "To an extent"

Donald's brow dropped to a straight line.

"We're trying. We were seeing a counsellor before all this-"

"What for?", The older man frowned, leaning forward in his seat.

"Her idea", Rick shrugged.

"She couldn't talk to you?"

"Now I think she can but… before, I don't think she really wanted to"

Donald sighed, "She can be like that. Her way of punishing herself and others is by severing all kinds of communication. She's stubborn too"

"She is"

"But you're no better. You've always been forceful. Bullish"

Rick blinked at the man, who had similar traits as the ones he was listing.

"Just try to listen to each other. Take your time with each other, and always be willing to compromise, don't just make decisions for the both of you without consulting the other"

"I feel like that last point was directed specifically at me-"

"It was. You're bossy. She can be too, but she's willing to follow for lead of the ones she loves to make them happy"

"...That's true", Rick sat back in his bed as he thought of something else, "We met your... girlfriend? A while back"

Donald sat back, "Ah, Sharon, she did tell me about that…"

"...She seemed nice"

"She is… she really is. She's going through a tough time at the moment. Her children are moving away and taking her granddaughter, she's heartbroken about it"

Rick eyed him, "...Her granddaughter… her name wouldn't happen to be Lauren, would it?"

Donald nodded, looking at him strangely, "It is. How'd you know?"

"Carl's little girlfriend"

"Really? So wait, he's the boy that they think is trying to corrupt their daughter?"

"Yeah."

"But he's a good kid?"

"They were both stupid a while ago, skipping school to 'hang out'..."

Donald's expression grew serious, "What does 'hang out' mean?"

"Well we found them wandering the streets in the middle of the day so it better mean that"

"Those little-"

"He's been doing well to make up for it. He'd pretty upset about Lauren though, he's bringing her by tomorrow"

Her father rubbed the back of his neck as he thought, "You mind if I bring Sharon too? To meet Carl?"

Rick wished Michonne was present to handle such a request, "Uh, yeah? Sure, that would… that should work"

"Just so she can see that he's a good kid, and I've only met Lauren once before so… it would be nice to get everyone together"

"Yeah… it would be nice"

…

"He's down the hall. He gets out tomorrow, so we're taking him in"

Rick frowned at Daryl, "What? He's down the hall?"

"Yep. You forget you shot him in his legs?"

He did, "You checked out the cars?"

Daryl nodded, "Yep. All of them came from Negan's lot. He was mad as hell when he saw us bringing in his boys"

Rick smirked, "Good"

"He ain't happy about losing 'Chonne either"

"Ah well", Rick shrugged, "I just wanna be there when he gets sentenced. That's all I want"

Daryl snickered, "I'm sure you'll be up and out by then"

"I better. I'm sick of this place"

"Sasha's baked you some brownies. She'll bring 'em down in the morning"

"I'll be sure to thank her for them"

"I was gonna put pot in them. Make your stay here a little more interesting"

Rick was chuckling at his best friend when he heard a knock on the door, "Come in!"

The door opened and closed before he saw who it was, and his smile soon faded. Lori walked in holding a bouquet of flowers in her hand, looking sheepish. Daryl groaned as he covered his face with his hand.

"Hi. Sorry if this is a bad time", She breathed, ignoring Daryl's obvious distaste for her.

"I'm gonna get some coffee", Daryl stood from his seat, sending Rick a knowing look.

Rick was more confused than anything else as he watched her step over to the end of his bed, while Daryl left the room.

"I heard what happened and I thought it was the least I can do", She motioned the flowers in her hand.

"What do you want?", Rick finally asked, paying no attention to her gesture.

She sighed, laying the flowers down and brushing her hair from her face, "To talk. I need to talk to you"

"I thought I'd hear from your attorney first?"

"Look, I know what I said and I didn't want things to get to that stage but you gave me no choice. You act as if I'm a danger to your family and that's not what I want. It's the complete opposite in fact"

Rick raised an eyebrow at her.

"I don't know what it is but… you've changed. And I used to think it was for the worse but you're so protective of your family and you lavish them in attention and it's just… that's what I wanted from you when we had Carl. I wanted the man you are today and seeing you've become that… I just want us to have another chance"

Rick looked at her like she had just sat up out of a coffin.

"I know a lot has happened since then but I think we can make each other happy again. In fact I know we can. You, me, Carl and Milly, we… we can give them the home they deserve"

It all slowly started to fall into place as he stared at the woman in front of him. He could have banged his head against the brick wall for not seeing it sooner.

"You helped me, Rick. You didn't have to but you did and you must obviously still feel something for me and you want that kind of woman that you can look after and provide for and that's me-"

"Oh God", Rick muttered, running his hands over his face.

"I know it may seem crazy but the signs are there, and I know you see them too-"

"Lori-"

"Rick, I love you. And a part it you will always love me, even if you're not ready to admit it"

He dropped his head back against the bed as he looked to the ceiling, "She's gonna take that damn ring off again".


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22:**

 _'How much do you love me?'_

"Have you been good?"

Michonne tried not to snicker as Rick glared at her. She knew he'd been a pain to the nurses, and a small part of her found it adorable that he hated being cared for. She learnt a long time ago that he preferred to do the nurturing.

"I wanna go home-"

"You will, okay? You're not staying here forever so stop being an ass"

"Where are the kids?"

"Out with your mom and Gerald, they still have like, three weeks left of summer break so...", She sighed as she put her purse down on the table at the end of the bed. Her brow furrowed at the bouquet of flowers that lay beside her purse, "Who got you flowers?"

Rick's eyes rolled shut for a moment, and she narrowed her own at him, "Can you let me explain the whole thang with no interruptions?"

She folded her arms over her chest.

"And promise me you won't go running out of here mid story?"

She rose an eyebrow at him.

"And you won't hit me?"

"I'm not promising that", She shook her head, "Now talk"

He exhaled, "Lori came by last night…"

Her expression changed vastly.

"Stop it. Let me talk", He warned with arms raised hand, "She came by… and she was… she said a whole lot...about some stuff…"

"What stuff?", She growled.

He eyed her, "...she said she loves me. Wants us to have another chance at a family...somethan' about how I've changed into the man she always wanted… That kind of stuff"

Michonne's heart was beating in her chest as she listened to him. She didn't know if it was because of anger or fear, but she did what she knew to best in those kinds of situations.

She picked up the flowers and joined him at his bedside, then began hitting him with them, "You see what happens when you make decisions by yourself?!"

He grabbed her arm, "Stop it!"

"No! I bet this is because you gave her that money?!", She breathed through gritted teeth.

His mouth opened and closed a few times as his gaze sailed off behind her.

"Exactly!", She resumed hitting him, with petals fluttering around them as they broke off the buds, "This is your fault!"

He grabbed both her arms and pulled her closer, "I know, now stop it"

She yanked her arms away from him and stalked over to the window, hurling the remainder of the bouquet out.

He dragged his hands over his face, "There's a bin right there"

"I prefer the window", She sighed, adjusting her blouse as she calmed.

"Get over here"

"No", She rejected stepping back over to the table to retrieve something from her purse.

"Michonne-"

"Here", She chucked a large brown envelope on to his lap, then rested on her forearms on the table, "Your little girlfriend had those sent to the department for you"

"Don't start that", He warned as he pulled the papers from the already opened mail. His eyes darted over them as he began to read.

"She wants her parental rights reinstated on the grounds of diminished responsibility at the time she relinquished them-"

"Cut the lawyer talk"

"She's claiming that she was unwell when she signed over her rights and she was forced into it by the both of us. She's also claiming that we're standing in the way of her building a relationship with-"

Rick threw the papers away from him, sending them floating around the room as he growled, his face registering nothing else but anger.

Michonne tilted her head at him, "Did your little girlfriend tell you about that?"

"Don't you fucking call her that again!", He roared at her with a hand pointed towards the door, as if the woman in question was stood there.

"She might as well be!", She yelled back, her finger pointed at him, "You were running around behind my back to be her little knight in shining armour and now look! She's coming in here professing her love for you while she's trying to take my son from me!"

"I've told you already why I gave her the money and I'm not saying it again Michonne", His tone was dangerously low, "If you think I knew it would lead to all this do you think I would have done it? Do you seriously think I wanted to hear her say what she did last night? I didn't even pay attention to half of it because I was sitting up here worried about what you would think!"

"Uh…"

Both of them were so caught up in their argument that they didn't notice the nurse at the door, looking around the room with wide, curious eyes.

"Do I have to call security?", her eyes darted back and forth.

"No you don't. We're just talking", Rick dismissed as he sat back in the bed.

"The flowers and the paper…"

"I'll clean that up", Michonne sighed as she walked around the bed, crouching down to collect them.

"Okay… well, please keep the noise down-"

"We will. We apologise", Rick raked his fingers through his hair as he watched Michonne.

"Alright"

The nurse left the room and neither said anything to each other for a while. Michonne gathered the papers and put them on the table, before working on picking up the petals.

"Come here"

She ignored him until he grabbed her forearm when she stood from the floor.

"Sit down"

The temptation to throw the petals in her hand at him was great, but she sat down as he tugged her to.

"This is what she wants. She's trying to cause problems for us-"

"Because she wants you", She hissed at him.

"Do I want her?", He cocked his head at her.

"I don't know, do you?", She tilted her head at him.

He bit back a curse word as he shook his head, "Do you know how mad it makes me to hear you talk like that?"

She rolled her eyes at him.

"No, Michonne, don't do that and look at me"

She huffed as she did.

"I mean it. It's the one thang that gets me mad quicker than everythan' else and I don't ever want to hear you even suggest such a thang to me, got it?"

While she thought it was a sweet thing for him to say, she had an attitude problem and couldn't help but scowl at his choice of words.

"Cut that out", He warned, tugging her closer, "I don't want Lori to be a problem and I don't want her to make us argue like this. I will argue about anythan' else in the world, but not her"

She softened only a little. Those horrible feelings that she felt previously were trying to make an appearance again, but she hoped it would only be a momentary thing.

"I love you", He almost whispered as he frowned at her, "Even after you beat me with some damn flowers while I'm lying in a hospital bed"

Her lip curled at him, "It didn't hurt"

"They could have had thorns on them", He raised his eyebrows at her.

"Oh please! They did not!"

"How do you know? It's not like we can check", He glanced towards the window.

She reluctantly chuckled, shaking her head at him.

"How much do you love me?", He grinned, his hands dropping to her waist.

She rose her hand, making a space of an inch between her thumb and index finger, "This much"

He feigned offence while she giggled, "You better give me a kiss for that"

She cupped his face, as she leaned forward pressing her lips against his. She couldn't deny that kissing him did make her feel considerably better. The way his tongue danced with hers always excited her greatly, so she slipped her fingers through his hair.

"Hey, stop all that", He mumbled against her lips.

"I know I know", she sighed as she broke away from him.

"I'm delicate right now", He pouted.

A snort of laughter left her, "Yeah, right"

"Lock the door, we'll go slow"

"Stop it Grimes"

…

Michonne arrived home that night drained. Though she left things with Rick fine, hearing about Lori's declaration bothered her more than she'd like to admit. She had suspected the other woman was doing little things to get his attentions, and to find out she was right, didn't make her feel good at all.

Her home was quiet, which she was quite surprised about as Carl usually went to sleep late. She chose not to inspect the bottom floor of the home, as she was too tired, and instead took off her heels before she headed upstairs.

She checked on Judith, who was sound asleep in her bed, laying on her stomach. While she never voiced it as much as she should, she was incredibly proud of how well her son was when it came to looking after his little sister. He had been doing so for most of the summer with no problem and she made a mental note to treat him to something special for it all.

She made her way over to Carl's door and cracked it only a little, but that's all she had to do to see what she saw. She swung it open with a gasp.

"Mom!", Carl cried as he jumped off the other body.

"Oh my god", Lauren cried as she sat up bolt straight.

Michonne's heart was in her mouth as she took in the scene in front of her. She couldn't even speak, her mouth just hung open, as did theirs. She was sure if she had stayed there any longer she would have thrown up from pure shock.

"And to think I was going to buy you something nice!", She yelled before slamming the door. She began to turn away when she stopped, turning back to open it again, "You better get dressed and get down those stairs now!"

She didn't know why she started sobbing as she made her way back down to the lower floor, but she didn't rule out the fact that her son was no longer the sweet little boy she wished he was.

The two teens didn't take long to make an appearance, and found her pacing the living room, much like Rick would.

"Mom, I'm-"

"You fifteen! You're fifteen years old! What the hell were you two thinking?! Your sister was just-", She gasped, "Your sister is just down the damn hall!"

"She's been in bed since seven-"

"So the two of you have been messing around for-", She looked at her watch, "Two hours!"

Carl's head fell, while Lauren stood with such an uncomfortable look on her face, her hands fidgeting in front of her.

"Why would you do this to me?!", Michonne threw her hands up in the air, "I just wanted to go see your father- Your father! He is going to eat you and I won't be able to stop him!"

"Mom, can you calm down and stop crying please?", Carl requested sadly.

She released a shaky breath as she rubbed her temples, closing her eyes, "He's trying to make me grandmother at thirty-four years old"

"Mom! ...We… we got a little… carried away and we're sorry, it's just she's leaving and I wanted to say goodbye-"

"That's how you say goodbye?! You're just like your damn father! Thinking with everything else but your brain!"

Carl looked like he wanted to gag at the reference but quickly straightened up.

"Lauren, in the car, now!", Michonne pointed towards the door, and the teen flew out the room. Michonne stomped behind her, "You better be asleep when I get home!"

"Yes mam"

Michonne tried her best to calm herself as she drove, but she was still so shocked and upset. Lauren said nothing, she just sat there with wide, horrified eyes as she stared out the windshield. Michonne's eyes were virtually the same.

"Where do your parents think you are?", She asked sternly.

Lauren almost whispered, "In bed"

Michonne gripped the steering wheel tightly.

"...I'm really sorry Mrs Grimes…"

Michonne glanced at her, "You should probably save that apology for your parents"

The colour drained from her face, "Please. Don't tell then that part… they're really strict and… really traditional"

Michonne's frown didn't fade.

"Can you let me tell them when I'm ready?... like after I've moved out or something?"

She huffed, her grip loosening a little, "Lauren. It's a big thing… what the two of you… Oh god"

"I know… we do. We just… we like each other a lot"

"That kind of stuff is something you should wait to do. You're still so young and it's such an emotional time and I know you think you can handle it but-", She groaned as she thought about it, "God, why me? Why me?"

"...I really care about Carl though…"

She glanced over at the young girl, whose head was down. She nearly groaned again, "You can tell your parents that side of things when you're ready… just don't take too long"

Lauren looked up at her, her eyes lighting up a little, "Thanks Mrs Grimes"

Michonne let out a long suffering sigh.

…

"Hey 'Chonne?"

Michonne wished she could smile at Daryl, but she had no energy to, "Hey Dixon"

Daryl frowned at her, then Judith as he held her in his arms, "What's wrong with mama?"

Judith looked at her mother, then her uncle, "Maybe she wants marshmallows?"

Daryl chuckled, "Maybe you want marshmallows"

Carl sighed from behind her, "Mom, I'm gonna go get a soda or something…"

She glanced over at him for only a second, "Fine"

"Hold on, I need a coffee or somethan', I'll come with you", Daryl put Judith down and walked with Carl down the hall.

Michonne took Judith's hand and led her to her father's room, where he was up talking to Sasha, while Lily sat on his bed, playing with the remote for his bed.

"Hey Sasha, my little Lily drop", Michonne greeted as the stepped further into the room.

"Daddy!", Judith beamed.

"Hey sweetie", He grinned at her.

Michonne sighed lifted Judith to kiss her father, then put her on the bed beside Lily, giving the other little girl a kiss also.

"Where's Carl?", Rick questioned.

"He went with Daryl to get some drinks", She sighed.

Sasha held out a tub of brownies for her. Michonne was about to decline but then she got a whiff of the treats, so helped herself. She took a bite as she walked around to the other side of the bed.

"Oh we have some good news!", Sasha smiled.

"I get to go home tomorrow", Rick grinned.

"Oh that's great!", She covered her mouth with the back of her hand as she spoke.

"It is ain't it?"

She nodded, "I'm gonna have to set up the living room for you then… you won't be able to take any stairs for a while"

"Nah, I don't like sleeping on the couch"

"My daddy sleeps on the couch sometimes, uncle Rick", Lily ejected sweetly.

Sasha chuckled, "He does, doesn't he?"

Rick snickered at his god daughter's ease at volunteering information.

"You can just sleep there for a few nights", Michonne insisted.

"Alone?", He pouted.

She rolled her eyes at him, "You big baby"

He gave her a lopsided smile, "We can have sleepovers"

"I want to have a sleepover!", Judith chirped.

"Of course you can sweetie", Rick insisted.

"Take turns. You sleep with him the first night, then Judith the second… pretty sure Carl wouldn't mind", Sasha suggested with a shrug, "Though he is getting older now"

Michonne tensed as she thought about her son.

Rick eyed her suspiciously, "What?"

She shook her head.

"Tell me. Now"

She gazed at him for a moment, "I yelled at him already"

"What did he do?"

Her eyes snapped shut, "I caught him with Lauren last night"

Rick stared at her, "What does that mean?"

"It means, I caught him in bed with Lauren last night"

Sasha's jaw dropped as she froze in place.

Rick's top lip twitched as he winced at her, "Clothed?"

"I wish", Michonne's nearly broke.

Rick's eyes sailed away from her as he absorbed the information. He squinted across the room, "He wouldn't…"

"He did"

"After everythan' we talked about?", Rick didn't seem to be asking anyone in particular the question, as his focus was still on the wall in front of him.

Judith peaked behind Lily at her father, then tapped her on the shoulder. She shuffled further down the bed and Lily mimicked her. Michonne wasn't sure if it was a good thing that her daughter knew when her father was furious.

The rage seemed to catch up with Rick as he from became more prominent, "Where is he?!"

Michonne opened her mouth to answer his question again, when the door opened, and her father stepped in, followed by the woman she knew to be his girlfriend, and her son's own girlfriend, who looked just as confused as she did. Her face went through a range of emotions as she watched them walk in.

Rick released a very quiet groan as he obviously just remembered a vital piece of information. Michonne looked down at him with a questioning look as she tried to smile like she usually would, while Rick gave her an apologetic wince.

Everyone was in the middle of greeting each other when the door opened again, and Daryl walked in with Carl. Her son's eyes darted between the three other visitors wildly as he tried to work out what was happening. Rick sat up straighter as he zeroed in on his son.

Michonne rested her hand lovingly on his shoulder, but gripped him tightly as she breathed through a smile, "Not now"

He exhaled, his jaw clenched as he agreed with a single nod. Carl's shoulders fell, as he was the only person to pick up on his parent's moods.

Sasha cleared her throat quietly as she seemed to work out everything quicker than everyone else. She grimaced, muttering to herself, "Oh boy".


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23:**

 _'I don't think you understand'_

"If I'd known he was your son I would have insisted that we all got together sooner"

"I only found out the other day when Rick told me"

"Isn't it funny how these things work out?"

"That's what happens when you live in a small town"

Rick baby listened to the conversation going on over his head. He was almost beside himself with rage. He only had eyes for his son, who kept his head down to avoid his father's glare.

"It's such a shame that you'll be moving Lauren"

"...Yeah"

Rick's eyes slid over to the young girl, who quickly looked elsewhere. His eyes went straight back to Carl's head.

Michonne pinched him on the arm and he frowned at her, causing her to give him a warning glance. He couldn't understand how she was so calm, as he was ready to leap out of the bed to catch his son.

"So how are you doing Rick?", Sharon asked as she turned her attentions to him, holding up a small basket, "I brought you some fruit"

"Thank you very much, I appreciate that", Rick answered dryly, "I'm doing…. Well I'm breathing"

Sharon laughed, "You're probably still in a lot of pain. Good thing you've got so many hands around to help you, not to mention this big, young, strapping boy"

Carl kept his head down as the older woman tapped him on the back.

She nudged him, "You're gonna have to be the man of the house until your father gets better"

Rick snapped, "Oh he already thinks he's the man!"

"Rick!", Michonne growled at him.

"You!", He pointed his finger at his son, "Get over here, now!"

"Come on girls, let's go take a walk", Sasha hopped out her seat and held out her hands to Judith and Lily, "We'll go get some ice-cream or something"

"My daddy's mad-", Judith informed as she jumped down to the floor.

"Come on, sweetie", Sasha urged, ushering the little girl's out.

"Rick? What's the matter?", Donald asked with a concerned look.

"I didn't mean anythan' by that, I'm sorry", Sharon held her hand to her chest.

"It's not your fault", Michonne quickly explained.

"I think it's best that we all just take a step outside", Daryl raised his hand to the door, "Just a little father and son bonding"

"Just for a moment dad", Michonne insisted, planting herself in front of Rick as Carl took pigeon steps over to the bed.

Donald eyed them, clearly trying to grasp the situation, "Alright, but I'm just outside that door"

"Yes dad", She nodded.

Sharon rested her hand on Lauren's back as she led her out, and Donald followed them. Daryl scanned the scene once more, before closing the door behind him.

"Come closer", Rick growled.

Carl inched closer to the bed, but was sure to stand towards the end of it.

"You wanna explain yourself?", Rick rasped as he cocked his head at his son.

Carl looked as if he had a problem speaking, "I'm sorry-"

"What are you sorry for exactly? Sneaking your little girlfriend in the house without telling your mother? Getting caught doing thangs you have no damn business doing?", Rick squinted at him, "We trusted you to be home alone with your sister and this is what you do? What kind of stupid are you boy?!"

Carl's eyes didn't leave the ground.

"You better look at me! You thought you were old enough to do what you did last night so you better be old enough to look me in the eye today!"

His son's eyes crept up to meet his father's, though they were still barely visible beneath his hair.

Rick exhaled, "You are so lucky I can't reach you cause you'd be in the right place by the time I'm done with you"

"I'm sorry, okay! I really am", Carl pleaded, his chest rising and falling quickly, "We just got caught up in the moment and then mom came in and she was crying and-and you haven't even looked at me since!"

Michonne's eyes where in fact elsewhere in the room. Her bottom lip seemed to quiver as she inhaled.

"How'd you expect her to look at you! Your sneaking around having-and what did your mother tell you about sneaking around?! Didn't she tell you not to sneak around?!", Rick leaned forward as he bellowed at his son.

"She came by so we could say goodbye before she-"

"That's how you say goodbye?! By taking your little thang out?!"

Carl's shoulders fell just as his jaw did.

"It's a good thang I'm coming home tomorrow", Rick shook his head as he looked around the room aimlessly, "Because you… you seem to act first then think later. And I have no patience for that kind of nonsense. At all"

Carl looked to his mother, "Mom?"

Michonne sniffed as she stopped her quiet sobbing.

"You see what you did to your mother? You made her cry, Carl", Rick rubbed her back as he gave his son a disappointed look, "You don't ever make your mother cry"

Carl sighed as his head dropped again.

"Your punishment starts tomorrow and won't end until you have a beard, so I suggest you get out of here, go take a walk or somethan'. Enjoy this last little bit of freedom I'm granting you", Rick instructed. Carl spun on his heel and made his way out the room. Rick turned Michonne to face him, "Michonne-"

"You know what's next right?", She huffed, "Drugs"

"Michonne-"

"They start having sex and they start doing drugs-"

"I don't think it works like that", He wished he didn't want to laugh at her, but she was always so emotional when it came to Carl that he couldn't help it.

"You have to talk to him and you need to make sure they were safe-"

"I will, alright?, just not now. I can barely look him in the eye myself", Rick raised his eyebrows at her, "What did her parents say?"

She stared at him.

He eyed her suspiciously.

"I didn't tell them"

"...May I ask why?"

"They were planning on moving away because she got caught skipping school a few times so imagine what they would do if they found out they were… messing around. They were besides themselves when I dropped her off-"

"Okay, I get it. But… they still need to know. You'd want to know if it was the other way around right?"

Her face crumbled, "I don't want to know now! That image is burned into my retina and whenever I look at him I just see it!"

Rick grimaced, "Great. Just great… well he is fifteen… probably didn't even do it right-"

"Rick.", She bit out.

"When I was his age I didn't know a damn thang", He shrugged, "I didn't know where it went or how it got there. I didn't even put my hand on a girl's chest until I was seventeen"

She stared at him.

"I'm being honest here! What the hell did you know at fifteen?"

"Nothing", She sighed, sitting on the bed beside him.

"Exactly. And he's younger than both of us so we can just hope he… oh God, I don't even wanna think about it"

A knock on the door distracted then both, and Daryl slipped in the room, "Everythan' all right in here?"

Neither of them said anything, they just gave him tired stares.

He winced at them, "What did he do?"

Rick ran his hand over his mouth, "Got caught messing around with Lauren"

Daryl's eyebrows shot up. He looked back towards the door, then back at them, "And he walked out of here with both legs still intact?"

Rick groaned, stroking Michonne's arm in slow soothing movements.

"Well, ain't he lucky"

"Where's Lauren?"

"We should probably talk to her in front of her grandmother", Michonne suggested, "She might be able to talk to her parents… instead of us"

Rick quickly thought it over, and realised he would prefer it that way too, "Alright"

Daryl signalled for Donald to come back inside with Sharon and Lauren. Rick tried not to glare at Lauren, as she seemed to have worked out what was going on and looked like a deer caught in headlights.

"What happened?", Donald asked as he approached the foot of the bed.

"We need to talk to Sharon… about Lauren… and Carl", Rick kept his eyes on the teenager, "Lauren was over at our house last night"

Sharon nodded, "Yeah, her mother told me. The only reason she's allowed out today is because she's with me"

"Yeah… well I'm sure if they knew what she was doing at our house then she wouldn't be here at all"

Sharon's brow shot up, "What?"

"What?", Donald's brow dropped.

Rick tilted his head at the teen, "Lauren?"

The girl looked like she wanted to throw up, "We… Mrs Grimes… she… when… we-"

"I caught them. In bed. Together", Michonne answered for her, exasperated.

Sharon was still as she looked at her granddaughter, her eyes creeping all over her young face.

Donald seemed to be frozen too.

She swallowed, visibly at a loss for words and unsure of how to deal with the situation, "Lauren, apologise to the Grimes".

"I'm sorry… really sorry", Lauren quickly pleaded.

Rick and Michonne gave her a small nod.

"I guess it's actually for the best that she's moving, because for some reason…", She turned and looked at her granddaughter with crazed eyes, the weight of the situation finally hitting her, "She loves being in trouble!"

Lauren dropped her head forward.

"I'm sorry we have to leave like this, but… I'm gonna have to tell my daughter about this and… oh, am so disappointed!…", the woman's fists balled as she stomped her foot, "Say goodbye to the Grimes, now!"

"Goodbye", Lauren almost whispered.

Sharon huffed, "Sorry about this. Thank you for having us. Donald?"

Michonne's father seemed to struggle to catch up, "I'll walk you down. I need to find that grandson of mine anyway"

They bid each other farewell and Rick sat back with a sigh, while Michonne slumped back against him, resting her head on his. Both were drained from it all.

Daryl scratched the back of his head as he looked at them, "Well, that was somethan', weren't it?"

…

"I don't like it"

"Oh just move it, Grimes"

Rick sighed as Michonne helped him walk over to the couch, which she had made into a makeshift bed.

"I don't like that pillow"

"Just sit down you ass", She hissed as she helped him down.

He slumped back on to the cushions with a huff, "I wanna be in my own bed"

She straightened up and sent him an unimpressed look, "I think I liked you more when you were at the hospital"

"Yeah yeah", He scowled, "Where's my little nurse?"

"Here daddy!", Judith came bolting in the room with her pink wagon full of all kinds of toys. She stopped in front of them both, "First, we need to check your temperature"

"Ready when you are sweetie", He smiled.

She took out a toy thermometer after rummaging around, "Okay, bend over daddy"

"What?", Rick instinctively clenched as he frowned at his daughter.

"Judy, you put it in daddy's mouth", Michonne informed, ready to burst out laughing.

"They didn't do that in that movie with the doggies?", Judith frowned.

Rick sighed, "Yeah, how about we do it the normal way… for people"

She shrugged, "Okay"

Rick nearly choked as she shoved it in his mouth, "I hope you learn to be a little more gentle when you get older. You gonna be a nurse?"

She looked at him with a blank expression as she relayed new information to them, "Aunt Drea said I won't need to do anything if I marry a rich boy"

Rick inhaled sharply as he looked at Michonne.

She looked as if she was battling with herself, "Well she's right but… you should still want to do something that you like Judith. You like dancing right? Well you can be a dancer!"

Judith nodded excitedly before digging around in her wagon again.

Rick mouth to Michonne, "Your friend"

Michonne waved a dismissive hand at him, sitting down on the couch, "Yeah yeah"

"And now we have to check your relaxes", Judith held up a toy hammer.

Rick chuckled, the thermometer still in his mouth, "Reflexes, sweetheart"

"Reflexes", She repeated, before swinging the little hammer down on his knee with such a force that Rick yelped.

"Jesus Christ", Michonne gasped, "Judy, baby, why don't we watch a movie and get some snacks? Should we do that instead?"

Judith seemed to consider it, then dropped her hammer in the wagon, "Okie doke!"

Rick rubbed his knee, watching his daughter skip out the room as he whispered to Michonne, "She might have to marry a rich man after all"

She snickered as she stood up, "Stop it"

"She's gonna put me right back in that hospital"

She shook her head at him as she walked out the room. The front door opened shortly after, and Carl appeared, slightly muddy.

"I can't find the shovel?", He breathed.

"You don't need a shovel. Just rip those weeds right out", Rick replied, snatching the remote off the coffee table.

"Can I at least have gloves?"

"You don't need gloves. A few scratches won't kill you", Rick kept his eyes in the TV as it switched on.

Carl sighed, his hair tied out of his face so he could wipe his brow with the back of his hand, "Can I get a bottle of water?"

"You don't need-"

"Come and get a bottle!", Michonne called sternly from the kitchen.

He raised an eyebrow as he finally looked at his son, "You better make that bottle last"

Carl shrunk as he walked down the hall to the kitchen. Rick muttered a few undesirable words to himself as he sat back on the couch. Judith came running back into the living room with a tub of marshmallows, her eyes bright with excitement.

"Can I give Carl one?", She asked, "I think he's sad"

Rick smiled at her, "You can but not today. In about three months you can, okay?"

Her brow furrowed, "When's that?"

"Don't worry, I'll remind you… and I need you to promise daddy somethan', okay?"

She stared at him.

"I need you to promise daddy that you will never have a boyfriend"

Judith's little brows met each other as she frowned, "But what if I like a boy?"

His tongue rolled around his teeth, "Then daddy will get you a puppy instead"

Her eyes lit up as she gasped, "Okay!"

"That's my sweet angel", He grinned, wondering if he should get the agreement in writing.

Rick noticed Carl head back out into the front yard from the corner of his eye, and he groaned when the door closed. Michonne came back in the room, looking bothered as she picked up his medication from the coffee table.

"What wrong?", He asked, watching her read the back of the box.

She shook her head, "Nothing… your mother's going to come and stay with Gerald tomorrow"

Rick winced, "How's that gonna work?"

"Well you're down here, your mom can have the guest room, Judith can sleep with me and Gerald can have her bed"

His mouth fell open, "So I'm really not getting back in my own bed any time soon"

She shrugged, handing him the pills, "You can share the bed with me and Judith"

His brow dropped to a straight line, "Have you forgotten that one of us a is a terrible sleeper?"

Her eyes darted down to Judith, who was in a trance in front of the TV, "Fine, we'll take turns with her, okay?"

He reluctantly accepted the deal, swallowing the tablets she gave him.

"We need to talk about re-decorating", She announced as she dropped the tablets back on the table, "Now, I don't expect for this to happen any time soon but it would be nice if-"

"You're not having another shoe closet", He shook his head as he looked at the TV.

Her hand cupped his jaw and she turned his head to face her, "That wasn't what I was going to say. We need an office"

"No.", He swatted her away and turned back to the screen. It surprise him how easily the words flew from his mouth, as he usually couldn't deny her requests, but this was something he was adamantly against.

Michonne seemed quite taken back by his refusal, "What do you mean no?"

He could barely look at her, "You heard me. No. No home office".

"Rick I have a lot of work to do-"

"So you do it at work. No. Home. Office."

Her eyes narrowed at the side of his face, "I want a home office"

He slid his eyes over to her, "No."

She crossed her arms, "Why are you so against it?"

"We don't need it", He shrugged, pursing his lips.

She studied him got a few moments, then raised an eyebrow at him, "I'm calling Aaron"

"Who?", Rick's face pinched.

"The counsellor"

"No!", Rick barked, causing Judith to jump, "Sorry sweetie"

She eyed both her parents, before turning back to the screen.

"We're done with that now, we tried it and it helped and we're grateful-"

"We still have three more sessions. I paid for six", She raised her eyebrows at him.

He threw his hands up in the air, "Three more? Why? Don't you think we're doing well? I feel like we're almost at the same place we were long before we got divorced"

Her lip twitched, "We can still benefit from three more"

He frowned at her, "Did you hear what I said?"

She rolled her eyes at him, "Just because you think we don't need any more help, it doesn't mean that I must automatically agree with you. I don't. And as I said, I paid for six so we're going to six"

"Let me guess, they're non-refundable right?", He shook his head as he looked up at the ceiling, "I obviously got into the wrong line of work"

She cackled, throwing her head back, "Yeah, right. You? As a counsellor?"

He was offended, "You don't think I could do it?"

"God no! You don't have the patience for such a thing!", She exhaled, still grinning as she looked at him.

"I bet I can"

Michonne's eyes were almost slits as she looked at him. Her competitive side had reared itself and it was something they rarely ever brought out of each other, as he was competitive too, "Alright Grimes. Are we placing bets?"

"Let's make it interesting", He urged.

"Fine. I bet you can't go a week being calm and understanding. And by that, I mean you can't give any inkling that you're getting mad, annoyed or uninterested in what a person's saying. You have to be completely positive."

Rick tensed as he thought about it, because people generally annoyed him, but he wasn't going to back down, "Fine. I bet you can't go a week without spending any money"

Her eyes widened a fraction.

"I know there's food in the fridge, the cars are both full, the bills should have all came out already, so you'll have no reason to spend any money at all for a whole week"

She rolled her shoulders as she considered it, "Fine. When I win, I want….my office"

He groaned, but was still in no means turning away from the bet, "Fine. And when I win… you have to give me whatever I want for twenty-four hours"

She scoffed, "Oh that's definitely a deal"

"I don't think you understand… you can't say no to me for a whole twenty-four hours"

He could almost pinpoint the moment that she realised what such a request from him could entail, as her smile faded and her eyes rolled shut.

"Oh, I can't wait for this"


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24:**

 _'You bite me and I'll bite you back"_

"I'll be checking the accounts all week"

Michonne scowled at her own reflection in the hallway mirror as she listened to Rick taunt her from the living room.

"In fact, give me your purse"

She frowned as she turned to face him, hand on her hip, "What?"

"Give it to me. I want to check how much money you have in there so there's no difference at the end of the week"

She scowled at him, but still marched into the living room and pulled out her purse for him to go through. She was determined to get her home office, so she was willing to put up with his rules and regulations.

"So by the end of the week you should still have seventy dollars exactly in there", He took out his phone and held out each bill on his lap.

"Taking a picture of the serial numbers. Just in case", He insisted.

"Oh, you're such a an ass", She winced at him as she crossed her arms, "Hurry up so I'm not late for work"

Carl came down the stairs already dressed for the day and Michonne looked at him suspiciously.

"What do I have to do today dad?", He asked as he tied his hair back into a ponytail.

Rick looked up at him, a tight smile appearing on his face, "Today you'll be cleaning out the attic son"

Michonne looked at Rick with a questioning expression.

"Move the boxes, sweep and dust it out, the vacuums already upstairs so your gonna need that for the webs"

Carl's shoulders slumped as he turned and walked back upstairs.

"There's a spider the size of Texas that likes to hide in one of those boxes, so you be careful up there!", Rick called as he handed Michonne her purse.

Carl stopped on the stairs, and she was sure she heard him whimper before he carried on.

She narrowed her eyes at Rick, while he smiled at her, "The attic? Really? You don't even go up there"

"Did you not just here what I said about the spider that lives in there?", He raised his eyebrows at her, "That thing was so big I could see myself in its eyes"

"You're a big chicken", She snorted, "Just take it outside"

"I am not a chicken, I'm not scared of spiders, I just don't like them", He asserted, "And I'm sorry, but are you not the one that didn't sleep in the bedroom at our old house for a whole week because there was a spider in it?"

"That was different! You let it get away-"

"Because it looked like it had the ability to jump! Do remember it's legs? It had bigger calves than me!"

She didn't want to laugh, but he always seemed to find a way to make her chuckle heartily.

"Come here", He curled his finger at her in a way that made her swoon.

"No, I have to get to-"

"Yeah, come give me a kiss goodbye then", He grinned at her as he raised a teasing eyebrow.

She sighed, kneeling on the couch with the intentions of giving him a quick peck on the lips, but he was in a flirtatious mood, and his tongue was in her mouth before she could blink. It was the kind of kiss that made her heat pulse with anticipation, as one of his hands gripped her thigh and the other held her waist. She wanted to pull away from him but she found herself unwilling to so soon.

"I'm gonna win", He whispered against her lips.

The fog of desire dispersed and she was off him in a flash, "You wish"

"You think I'm gonna miss the opportunity to have you do whatever it is I please?", He smirked.

"Yeah yeah", She waved her hand at him as if she were swatting away a bee.

Judith came running down the stairs, still in her green one piece pyjamas set, "Bye mama!"

"Bye baby", She kissed her daughter on the forehead as she stood on the bottom step, "Remember our deal okay?"

Judith nodded excitedly.

"What deal?", Rick called.

Michonne smiled at Judith before stepping over to the front door, "Goodbye Grimes"

…

"So what are we doing about this Lori thing?"

Michonne snarled, "You mean after I kill her?"

Andrea cackled, swinging her legs over the side of the chair in front of Michonne's Desk, "I can't believe she actually filed for her rights to be restored"

"That's not all she did", Michonne scoffed, "She went to see Rick when he was in the hospital, brought him flowers and declared her love for him. Again"

Andrea's jaw dropped as she swung around to face her, "No, she didn't"

"She did. She actually did"

"No! What did Rick say?"

"He obviously turned her away but I still beat him the flowers because it is his fault"

Andrea snickered, her eyes lighting up, "You beat him with the flowers?"

"Of course I did. He's gave her the green light to think that he still cares about her when he gave her that money, so he's lucky she didn't bring him anything heavier"

"You want me to get her for you? I don't want her using anything against you in the case", Andrea suggested with raised eyebrows.

"I would love to let you, but this is long overdue. Ever since she came back in their lives she's just been angering Rick-"

"Which isn't hard by the way", Andrea added dryly.

Michonne smirked, "True, but still… Carl doesn't really care, but then again he doesn't even know the half of it. She's just been this little pain in the ass for me and I hate her for it"

"She's trying to take your boys away from you. I get it, so let me swing her around one more time"

Michonne laughed at her friend, "Oh you'd love that"

"Of course I would! I can't stand her! Shane told me she was nuts long before I even met her. She's literally a pathological liar and she's delusional and she's just so damn sneaky"

"All very true"

"Are you gonna tell Carl about it all?"

Michonne nodded, "Well we have to. We were going to wait and see what she did first and obviously, she did what she said"

"How the hell would she even afford this if she came to Rick asking for money?"

She shrugged, "She's probably duped some other idiot out of some money too"

"That bitch-"

"Andrea? We need to head over to the station to talk to Negan about the court date", Milton stood in the doorway, holding his briefcase and raising his eyebrows at the blonde woman.

She hopped out of her seat, "Do I look good in this?"

Michonne studied her friends white shirt and tight work pants, "You are scandalous! What about Shane?"

"I'm not doing anything! I'm just enjoying the attention! Jeez", Andrea rolled her eyes, "It's nice to get a few compliments"

"From a drug lord?", Milton asked dryly.

Andrea turned to look at him, "When was the last time someone made your little specs fog up?"

Milton blushed and quickly disappeared from the doorway.

"You were so wrong for that", Michonne giggled, covering her face with a piece of paper.

Andrea winked at her as she left the room, "I know right"

Michonne shook her head at her friend, grateful she was willing to take on Negan for her, even if it was for all the wrong reasons. She was about to busy herself with paperwork when her phone rang.

"Hey Sasha", She greeted cheerfully.

"Hey! Listen, that little boutique on Marcy Street is having a sale, seventy percent off everything"

Michonne winced at the phone, "Did Rick put you up to this?"

"Huh? Up to what?"

"We're having a bet. I can't spend any money this week"

Sasha was silent for a moment, "Well you picked a bad time to that"

"Tell me about it", Michonne sighed, staring ahead blankly, but then the idea struck her, "What if you pick me up a few things and I'll-"

"Nope! That's technically cheating"

"How?!"

Even though you're not physically spending anything now, you'll still be effectively making a purchase that you pay for later and you'll be getting the gratification-"

"Alright! God! No wonder the two of you get along so damn well", She pouted, "Can you just tell me about it all?"

"Now you know you really wouldn't that-Oh my god, look at those boots! Girl, I have got to go"

Sasha hung up, and Michonne groaned as she rested her head on the desk.

"So I take it lunch is on me when I get back?", Andrea suggested from the door, wearing her jacket and ready to leave.

"No. I brought my lunch", Michonne mumbled, turning her head only an inch so she could hear her.

"Oh wow, you really want to win"

"I do".

…

Michonne felt oddly deflated when she arrived home that evening. She didn't think she had a problem when it came to spending money, but not having access to it bothered her. It wasn't as if she would spoil herself regularly, because she would often see things for the children or Rick and she would enjoy purchasing them spontaneous gifts. She wouldn't admit it to Rick, but she hated not being able to buy anything.

Her competitor was right where she left him when she walked into living room, and she could almost instantly tell that something was bothering him.

"Where are the kids?", She leaned on the recliner to take off her heels.

"Judith's in the yard with my mom and Gerald... and your son is cleaning the bathroom"

Her eyes narrowed, "Did you talk to him?"

"I did and I really, really wish I didn't"

"Tell me everything", She sat down in the seat, looking at him with wide eyes.

He exhaled, "Well, the night in question, she snuck over… they talked and watched some cartoon thang on his computer… then they started kissing… and from what I can gather… not that much happened"

She stared at him.

"He said they were… I dunno, fumbling around for a while, which by the way proves my point, I told you he probably didn't do it right-"

"Just go on", She hissed.

"Anyway, he finally… worked it out. About thirty seconds before you walked in", He winced, "So he… barely did anything… which is a good thang because… they didn't use anythan'... at all"

Michonne's eyes were locked on Rick, "What?"

"Yep. You stopped them from having unprotected sex so, well done"

"Are being serious?", She winced at him in disbelief.

"He said he looked for somethan' but obviously, we don't use anythan'-"

"He went snooping in our room for condoms?"

Rick nodded, "He did"

She sat back as she huffed, "You told him-"

"I did. I gave him the speech, all while I was calm and 'Positive' or whatever it is you said", He rolled his eyes.

"Really?", She was impressed, nodding as she looked around the room aimlessly.

"I think this week is gonna be a breeze-"

"What is that Rick?", She squinted as she noticed the remote on the arm of the chair beside him.

"Oh, I broke it. I already ordered a new one"

"How did you break it?"

He scoffed, "Well I couldn't snap him so I had to snap somethan' else"

"The remote?", She raised her eyebrows at him, "So that's how you're going to keep you anger in check this week? By breaking things?"

"It helped. A lot"

She rolled her eyes at him as she stood up, "You're a caveman"

"Hey, come here and look at this", He pulled something out from beside him and held it up to her.

She stepped over to him and took the Polaroid picture from him. She gasped as she looked at it, "Baby Judith!"

"Yep. She was three months in that picture"

"She was", Michonne sighed sadly as she examined it, "She liked me back then"

"She still does"

She winced at Rick as she turned to look at him.

"She loves you! You're her mama, of course she loves you, it's just our relationship is different-"

"Yeah yeah", She snorted, handing him the image back, "Are you going to walk around with that from now on?"

"It's going on the dresser. Right beside the one of Carl when he was a baby, and that one of you on our first date"

"Ugh, burn that picture", She groaned.

"You remember that night?", His devilish grin appeared.

She straightened up, "No, I don't"

"You want me to remind you?", He snickered.

"That won't be necessary", She spun on her heel, picking up her shoes and purse from the floor before heading to the stairs.

"You were a little-"

"Quiet Grimes!"

…

Michonne took a deep sigh before she knocked in Carl's bedroom door that night. She hadn't looked at him for so long and it pained her, but she was still very mortified at his behaviour.

The door opened and Carl's eyes widened a fraction, "Mom?"

She sighed, dragging her eyes up to meet his, "We need to talk"

His shoulders fell, "Can we… not? I mean, I know you guys think I don't listen but the last few days have been a living hell for me and I understand why you're both really mad because we shouldn't have done that and I shouldn't have snuck around and I'm sorry and I think I'm a little scarred from it all"

She stared at him, slightly agreeing with his point, as she didn't want to talk about it anymore either.

"I am really sorry mom. I didn't want to disappoint you and dad but I wasn't really thinking…"

She groaned as her eyes sailed behind him, and she frowned at his bare bed, "Where's your bedding?"

Carl peaked behind him, "Dad told me to take them off… then said I need to earn back a new set"

Michonne groaned again, "Go get some from the closet, then go straight to bed"

Carl nodded, then dipped his head as he peaked at her, "Can I have a hug?"

Every shred of anger she felt for her son evaporated in that moment. She crumbled, yanking him into her arms and holding him tightly as she began to sob again.

"Oh my god mom, please stop crying, dad said if I made you cry again then I have to sleep in the garage"

She chuckled sadly as she stroked his hair, missing how good it felt to have him in her arms. It was somewhat of a rarity as he got older, but it reminded her of the days when he was young, and he wouldn't want to be anywhere else but beside her.

"Go on", She sniffed, "Go get ready for bed"

She broke away from him after kissing him on the forehead. A part of her was ready to forgive him, but the other part of her still felt strange to look at him. It was all still quite raw, so she knew it would take her a while to get over it. She had a feeling it would take Rick a little longer.

She went back downstairs once she checked on Judith, who was fast asleep in their bed. Susan and Gerald were both preparing for bed in their respective rooms, while Michonne went downstairs to check on Rick.

He was sleeping with his head against the back of the couch when she walked into the room. She smirked as she strolled up to the TV and switched if off.

His head snapped up and his eyes narrowed, "What are you doing?"

"Lay down properly", She instructed, making her way over to him.

He groaned as he sat up and turned to lay across the couch, lifting his feet on to the comforter, "Come here"

"What for?", She snorted, pulling the sheets on to his legs.

"Come lay with me for a little while"

She rolled her eyes as she kneeled on the couch, placing herself beside him with one leg resting on top of his and her head on the pillow beside his.

He wrapped his arm around her and held her against him, "This is nice"

She hummed a response as she studied his face in the dimly lit room, "I talked to Carl"

One of his eyes opened, "Yeah?"

"He really is sorry"

"I'm sure he is"

"He's allowed to have bedding again"

The other eye opened, "No he's not-"

"Yes he is"

"Michonne-"

"Rick. I have left you to discipline him with no argument, and I will continue to let you discipline him, but he's allowed bedding and that's final"

He raised an eyebrow as he turned to look at her, "You're soft"

"I don't care. My baby's been through enough"

"There it is", He shook his head at her, "The same way you used to tell me that I undermine you when it comes to Judith is the same way you used to do the same with Carl".

"I was never as bad as you are with Judith-"

"Remember when he kicked his shoe off when he got home from school and broke the picture frame? What did you say to me?"

She glared at him.

"You said the damn glass was thin anyway"

She rolled her eyes again, "Go to sleep"

"No."

She was tempted to smack him but was too close to his wounds, so dipped her head to bite his shoulder instead.

"Did you just bite me?", He frowned at her.

"I did", She smiled.

His eyes darted around her face, "Alright, my turn"

"No-", She breathed, trying to move away from him but he was stronger, pulling her on top of him and sinking his teeth in to her neck as she squealed.

"You bite me and I'll bite you right back", He grinned against her skin.

"Get off me!", She giggled, pretending to fight against his hold.

"I told you before, don't try to run from me-"

"Well."

They both froze at the sound of his mother's voice behind them. Michonne peeled herself off him and climbed off the couch. Susan was stood in the doorway in her nightgown and slippers, her hair in rollers as she slowly shook her head at them.

"First thang", She raised a finger at them, "This is obviously not the first time I've caught the two of you kissing up on each other, but I'm glad that you're both dressed this time… as opposed to just one of you"

His mother sent him a pointed look, while Rick groaned as he dragged his hand over his face, and Michonne dropped her gaze to the floor.

"Second thang, I think this is all very ironic, considering what just happened with Carl, I would think you wouldn't want to put me through the same-"

"We're adults", Rick corrected.

"Yes you are, but it doesn't matter how old you are, no parent wants to catch their child messing around… especially on a couch that I have to sit on", her eyes darted between the two of them, "Now, I'm going to get some water, and I'd appreciate it, if y'all let me make it up the stairs before you start that all that again-"

"We weren't even doing anythan' mom", Rick chuckled disbelievingly.

His mother turned to the hallway, "That's what you said before… next thing I know, you were expecting Judith"

She disappeared towards the kitchen, and Michonne sighed, adjusting her tank top, "Well, you should definitely be able to sleep now"

Rick's eyes cascaded down the length of her.

"You have no shame Grimes"


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25:**

 _'If you call me daddy…'_

"Daddy don't move!"

Rick held back a sigh, "Alright, sorry sweetie"

Judith's little brows furrowed as she concentrated on brushing the varnish on her father's nails. Rick wasn't sure how he found himself in such a position, but he went along with it to make her happy.

"Dad, I can't find the… uh", Carl narrowed his eyes at the scene in front of him when he walked into the living area, "You have some… makeup on your…"

"You better tell your sister she did a good job", He warned with a smile.

Carl bit back a chuckle, "You did a good job Judy"

Judith beamed up at him before continuing on with the pamper session.

"Uh… Yeah, dad I can't find the cutters?"

Rick squinted as he thought, "Try the garage"

Carl nodded as he disappeared through the front door, just as Gerald appeared with his skateboard.

"Uncle Rick, have you got…", Gerald had the same reaction as his son, "You have some-"

"Tell your cousin she did a good job", Rick's smile was a tight one.

"You did a good job Judy", Gerald insisted as he tried not to laugh.

"Thank you!", Judith called back as she started on his other hand.

"Uh… Yeah, have you got bandages or something?"

Rick winced at him, "What for?"

"I took a pretty bad landing and Uh…", Gerald lifted his knee and Rick was horrified at the wound his nephew showed him.

"What the-", Rick caught himself, "Gerald. How did you do that?"

"Fell off, landed on the curb"

Rick slowly inhaled, "Your leg's covered in blood"

The teen looked down and chuckled, "Yeah, It is"

Another slow inhale, "Okay, well, go wash it, the first aid kit is on top of the cabinet in the bathroom. Bring it down when you're done cleaning it"

Gerald nodded as he turned towards the stairs.

"Damn teenagers", Rick muttered threw a sigh.

"Rick, does Michonne still like blackberry cobbler? I'm thinking about doing one for dessert?", His mother asked as she walked in, drying her hands on her apron.

"She does but you know she doesn't mind what you do, she'll eat it", Rick shrugged.

"I know but she's been at work all day… and she's already so thin-"

"Mom", Rick glanced at her.

His mother threw her hands up, "I'm just saying… I'm doing baby back ribs for dinner and I'm gonna start on the biscuits"

Rick grinned, "That sounds great to me"

"Of course it does. You'd eat a sponge if it was deep fried and dipped in cheese", She smirked as she turned to leave the room.

His mouth fell open, and he watched her disappear back to the kitchen, offended.

"All done!", Judith cheered excitedly as she admired her work.

"Thank you sweetie, now can-"

"I think your toenails should be… purple!", the little girl turned to her toy make up set and began looking for the other varnish.

He bit his lip as he dropped his head back against the couch. He was tempted to refuse anymore pampering but Judith was already lifting his leg, putting his foot on the coffee table and removing his sock.

"Knock knock!"

The front door opened and Lily poked her head through, as her mother stepped through the door.

"Come in!", Rick called when he saw the two of them.

Sasha went to greet Rick's mother before joining them, while Lily skipped over to him and her little green eyes lit up when she saw what Judith was doing.

"Go ahead honey", Rick put his other foot on the coffee table.

Lily turned to the makeup kit and picked up a varnish, "Blue!"

"Go right ahead", He smiled, though, the smell was making him nauseous.

The two of them wasted no time getting into their own little conversation. Their friendship was always something that Rick adored, and he was more than happy to give them something to bond over, even if it came at his own expense.

"Well don't you look pretty!", Sasha teased as she came back in the room.

Rick tried not to bare his teeth at her, "Thanks"

Sasha giggled wickedly, "We thought we'd stop by and bring you some more treats. Just some brownies and cookies-"

"I'm gonna have to hide them from Michonne and Carl"

"You will", She nodded in agreement, "Speaking of Michonne, how's the bet going?"

"Great. I haven't lost my temper once and she's not spent anythan'"

"That's good then, right?"

"No.", Rick shook his head, "Not at all because we've switched places. She's more irritable and I've have to replace a remote, a lamp, the coffee maker…"

Sasha stared at him, "Why?"

"Because It helps", He insisted dryly.

She frowned at him, "You both have a problem"

"I cleaned it Uncle Rick", Gerald walked in with a clean leg beneath his shorts, holding the first aid box. His eyes darted to Lily, then Sasha, and the boy's shoulders fell, "Uh… Hi"

"Oh hey, Gerald, what happened?", Sasha asked as she sat forward to look at him.

"Uh… I was… out on my board and I-I landed bad…", Gerald's cheeks flamed.

Rick bit his lips together in a bid to hold back a chuckle as he watched his nephew stutter nervously.

"Let me see it", Sasha instructed.

"Oh… Uh, Uncle Rick said he'd-"

"I'm a little busy at the moment", Rick motioned the two little girl's painting his toenails.

"Exactly", Sasha laughed, "Come on, I'll wrap it for you, sit here"

Sasha stood and Gerald stepped over to the seat sheepishly. She took the kit from him and began going through it as she kneeled and he sat down. Rick was highly amused.

"So have you been walking around yet Rick?", Sasha probed.

"Huh? Oh yeah… It's getting easier to move around", He's answered half-heartedly, more focused on watching his nephew squirm.

Gerald's whole face was crimson as he watched Sasha tend to him.

"You should really be careful out there", Sasha reprimanded as she shook her head at the teenager.

Gerald swallowed, "Yeah, no, uh… I will… from now on"

"All done daddy", Judith stood back to admire her work, then frowned, "How come you have hair on your legs and mama doesn't?"

Rick snorted, "Trust me sweetie, mama's legs can look just like daddy's sometimes"

"Really?", Judith looked at him with wide eyes.

"That's right… but how about we keep that between the two of us okay?", He quickly realised that if his comment got back to Michonne he'd be sleeping on the couch for longer than he'd like.

Judith nodded, but Rick could see that she was storing that piece of information away and it would somehow come back to haunt him.

"Can we put stickers on them?", Lily asked as she held up the little sheet of colourful stickers.

"Yes! You do that hand and I'll do this one", Judith took Rick's hand in her as they both sat on either side of them.

Sasha looked back over her shoulder and laughed, "That's my girls"

Rick held back another sigh, wondering how anyone could find pleasure in such a situation.

"Alright Gerald, we are all done", Sasha gathered up the discarded wrappings from the band aids and bandages.

"Thanks a lot… I really appreciate it", Gerald stuttered shyly.

"Oh it's fine", She smiled at him as she stood.

The teen seemed to swoon as he breathed, "You're beautiful"

"What was that?", Sasha asked as she handed him back the kit.

Gerald shook his head as he realised he wasn't in a dream, "Oh, nothing, uh, I'll put this… back"

The teenager all but sprinted out the room and Sasha sat back down in the recliner with a huff.

Rick threw his head back as he laughed, wishing Michonne had been present for the adorable, yet unrequited exchange.

"Stop it", Sasha frowned at him as she took out her phone from her purse.

"You heard him?", Rick looked at her with surprise.

"Of course I did", She hissed at him, "Talk to him"

He burst out laughing again, "No, this is funny-"

"Rick-"

"Fine!"

…

Rick smiled as the front door opened and Michonne stepped in, looking miserable, "Get over here grumpy"

She sent him a deadly look, as she walked in the living room, dropping her belongings on the recliner.

"How was your day?"

"Horrible", She huffed, peeling off her heels.

"Come tell about it", He offered.

She slumped over to him, throwing herself down on the couch and resting her legs over his lap, "Judith's birthday"

"It's coming", He nodded, beginning to massage her calves.

"Exactly. I looked at all these venues and party supply websites and I couldn't even get anything"

Rick needed his way up to the back of her thigh, "Well… it's not that you can't get her anythan'..."

She clamped her knees on his arm, "I'm not losing to you Grimes"

He smirked, "Is that what you think?"

She snarled at him, "Where are the kids?"

"Judith's helping mom in the kitchen, Carl and Gerald are in his room playing video games"

She raised her eyebrows, "You're letting him off now?"

"No, I'm not. I just wanted them out the way for a few hours. Gerald busted his knee doing tricks on his skateboard and Carl nearly maimed himself cutting the bushes"

"What?", She frowned at him.

"They're both fine. Nothing serious… hey, listen, you know Gerald's got a crush on Sasha?", Rick was already smiling as he remembered the incident from earlier.

"Really?"

"He even told her she's beautiful"

Michonne giggled, "No he didn't"

"I swear, he sat right there and said it, he had his puppy eyes on and everythan', smiling like a damn fool"

"Doesn't that sound familiar?"

His smile fell as he furrowed his brow at her.

"Mrs Hanson, was it?", She teased.

Rick sat back, "How the hell did you know about-"

"Shane. He told me", She wiggled her brows at him.

"When?", Rick demanded.

"When you were at the hospital. He came by, we got to talking and he was telling me all about when you two were young. He told me about Mrs Hanson and how you would get to class early… explains why you're into that whole 'sexy-teacher' thing…"

He pursed his lips at her, "What else did you two talk about?"

She shrugged, "The kids… work… mainly the two of you though"

"You like talking to him?"

She narrowed her eyes at him as she realised what his point was, "You're an ass"

"I don't like the way he looks at you"

"What does that even mean? How else should he look at me? And what does it even matter? He's not the one we have to worry about-"

"He's the lesser of two evils, but that doesn't mean we don't worry about him-"

"Rick. Shane was at the hospital for you, not me. And in case you've forgotten, he's also in a relationship with my best friend-"

"Like that would stop him from trying anythan'-"

"Maybe not, but my knee in his groin definitely would"

He eyed her, a small smile tugging at his lips, "Good…but listen we need to talk about that Lori situation with Carl…"

She nodded, "This weekend"

"...Alright"

She sat up and looked at him, "What is that on your cheek?"

"Probably make up... Judith... Her and Lily did my nails too", He showed her his hands and feet.

She snickered as she took his hand in hers, her eyes sailing over his nails, "They did a good job"

He sighed, "Please take it off"

"But you look so fancy now", She taunted with a pout.

"Michonne."

"Fine", She spun her legs off of his and stood up, "Next time, I want your hair done too"

"You're not funny at all"

…

"How's it feel to be out uncle Rick?", Gerald asked as the strolled along the street in town.

"Pretty good", Rick admitted as he looked down at Judith between them, holding both their hands.

They followed Michonne, his mother and Carl into a store, as school would be starting soon and the kids needed new clothes. Rick didn't mind the outing, as he was sick of sitting around at home and he was secretly hoping to see Michonne lose the bet.

"Remember, nothing ridiculous or offensive", Michonne warned Carl, "Now go. Gerald, if you see something you like then let your uncle know"

Rick pursed his lips at her.

"Come on Judith, let's go find you some nice little dresses", His mother grinned excitedly as she took the little girl's hand.

Michonne sighed as she watched them all go their separate ways.

Rick crept up behind her, his hand on her hip and his lips by her ear, "You see anythan' you like?"

"Stop", She breathed as she looked around sadly.

His voice dropped even lower as he rasped, "If you call me daddy then I'll get you want you want"

She gasped in her mouth, her back almost arching. She bit at him, "Stop it"

"You know you want somethan'... look at all those shoes, just waiting to trip me up in the early hours of the morning when I need the bathroom-"

"Get off me", She growled, swatting him away, "I'm gonna go sit down"

"Go ahead. I'm with the boys"

Rick found himself in the young men's section, watching Gerald and Carl stare at t-shirt for unreasonable amount of time. He sighed countless times as neither seemed committed to actually lifting the hanger off the rail.

"What's the problem here?", Rick finally asked.

Carl shrugged, "I'm not really into these kind of t-shirt anymore"

Rick winced at him, "Then what exactly are you into?"

"Something a little more... older? There's another store down the street-"

"Alright. We'll go there after. Come on, let's go find your sister"

He was glad the Judith seemed to be enjoying herself, as her grandmother had an arm filled with clothes. The little girl was very much like her mother when she shopped, only taking as few seconds decide if she wanted something or not, and swiftly moving on to the next item of clothing.

"She's better at this than us", Carl muttered as he watched her.

"Who's her mother?... And godmother? And Aunt?", Rick muttered back.

"Where's aunt Michonne?", Gerald asked.

"Probably rocking back and forth somewhere in a corner"

"Why?"

"We have a bet going on. She's not allowed to spend any money, I'm not allowed to lose my temper"

Gerald winced at him, "But you've broken a lot of stuff this week?"

"I have, but as long as I'm still pleasant, I'm well within my rights"

"What do you get if you win?", Carl's eyes popped open, looking amused.

Rick eyed both the teenagers as he figured out how to word his answer, "I get to be king for the day"

They both laughed, and Rick wasn't sure if that was the reaction he was looking for.

"What does mom get if she wins?", Carl pressed.

"An office"

Carl stilled, staring at his father with new, worried eyes, "She wants an office?"

Rick nodded, but slowly stopped when he realised his son looked quite shocked by the news, "Yeah. She wants one"

Carl's gaze dropped as he faced the other way. It dawned on Rick that he wouldn't be the only one that didn't like the idea of Michonne getting an office, and his son's reaction only strengthened his argument.

"Rick, take these", His mother dropped the pile of clothes in his arms, "Go put them at the counter, we're almost done"

He nearly groaned but did as he was told, taking Judith's little haul to the counter with his son and nephew.

"Can we get lunch?", Carl asked from behind him.

"Yeah, I'm hungry", Gerald agreed, "Isn't the diner nearby? My dad said they have the best burgers?"

"They do. And milkshakes"

"We have to get you guy's somethan' first, then we'll…", Rick froze, stopping dead in his tracks.

"Dad?", Carl questioned, looking at him strangely.

"Hush", Rick whispered, "Look"

All three Grimes men watched as Michonne stood at the counter, handing over her card to the sales assistant, as a small mountain of clothes sat folded between them. Rick had to admit, he hadn't seen her look so content in a long time, and he was sure he could hear her heart singing from where he was. The sales assistant handed her back her card and Michonne put it in her purse, while the woman bagged her items.

"Does she realise… she's lost?", Gerald looked to his uncle, confused.

"Nope… but she's about to find out", Rick whispered sinisterly, "Both of you take these"

They distributed Judith's clothes between them, as Rick had seen enough. He quietly made his way closer to her, and when she took the bag of forbidden purchases, he stood directly behind her. She spun around and found herself face to face, and almost chest to chest with him. The smile on her face faded away, and her eyes widened, as if she was waking up from a dream and stepping into a nightmare.

Rick's grin was of pure satisfaction as he exhaled, "Oh Michonne… I have never been so happy to see you spend money"

She raised her hand to him, "Now wait, technically-"

"Stop it"

"Rick, I blacked out-", She whispered harshly.

"I'm sure you did", He chuckled with glee, "You. Lost"

She looked as if she was ready to fight her point, but then her face crumbled, "I sat down and there was a sale rack… and they had all these shirts…and I've been so miserable! I've turned in to you and I hate it! And- and I don't want to lose!"

"But you have lost. And I…", He sighed happily, cupping her cheek with his hand, "..Have won"


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26:**

 _'I need this'_

"So… we wanted to talk to you before you left for your grandmothers about… Lori"

Carl frowned from the recliner, "What about her?"

Michonne opened her mouth to speak, but found herself unable to.

"She… wants custody of you again", Rick answered for her, "She's taking us to court over you"

Carl perked up, his eyes darkening, "She can't do that right?"

"She can try. A judge can hear her out-"

"But I don't want anything to do with her? Doesn't that matter?"

"It does and it will because you're fifteen, so if the case does get far enough, then you'll be able to talk to the judge", Michonne finally found her voice.

Carl looked like he was struggling to understand, "Why is she doing this? Is it because I didn't want to see her?"

"No. Not at all. This… this is more to do with the past", Rick admitted, "She's decided that she wants us all to be a family again-"

"What?", the teen was horrified, "Why? Why now?"

"Because… I made a mistake and helped her out. Now she thinks that you and I can be her family again"

Carl stared at his father, "You told her no, right?"

"I told her more than just 'no' but, she's persistent", Rick rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

"So what now? We just wait?"

"We've done what we need to do on our side and now we wait for a court date", Michonne assured, "But the only person who decides where you get to live is you. She can't force you to live with her if you don't want to"

Carl still looked bothered, but nodded, "Okay. Good"

Michonne relaxed only a little, while Rick sat beside her, angry.

"How do you guys feel about this?", He asked, his eyes darting between his parents.

They both hesitated, as neither wished to rant in front of him, but Michonne spoke for the two of them, "We aren't going to let anyone split us up"

Carl sighed, "Yeah. I don't want that"

"Good, cause it's not gonna happen", Rick breathed, looking around the room aimlessly, "Go get your stuff, alright?"

Carl nodded as he pushed himself out the chair and made his way to the stairs.

"I don't want him to worry about it", Michonne huffed when he was out of earshot.

"He will though. It's a scary thang for a kid to deal with, but we're handling it", He enforced, "Truth is, I don't want any of you worrying about her"

"I know", she sighed as she stood up, "I'm gonna go check Judith's bag pack"

"Please do. She tries to sneak every damn toy in there", Rick encouraged, "Last time she took her clothes out and filled it with dolls instead"

"That was your fault. You told her she can take any toy she wants so of course she's-"

"I said any. Not _every_ -"

"She's a child. She's not going to differentiate the terms-"

"Hold on", He raised his hand to stop her, "Are you really going full blown lawyer on me over my daughter's overnight bag?"

"And if I am?", She put her hand on her hip as she tilted her head at him.

He raised an eyebrow at her, "You better save that attitude for later"

She rolled her eyes as she turned to leave the room.

"Just like that"

…

Michonne woke up to the feeling of movement. She opened one eye, and saw Rick had pulled the comforter off the bed, and was sat naked, pulling her shorts and underwear off.

She looked at the alarm clock on the nightstand and sighed, "It's midnight, Rick"

"It is. My twenty-four hours start now", He grinned, throwing her shorts across the room.

She groaned, "Really-"

"We haven't had sex in just over a month", He began his speech, "And it took everything within me, to not rip your clothes off as soon as we got everyone out the house, but I wanted to start this off with no argument"

She stared at him as he climbed over her, his full weight on his hands as he looked down at her.

"Top off", He instructed.

She sighed, yanking her tank top over her head.

"How can you go so long without this? Don't you miss it?", His brow furrowed at her.

Her eyes darted to the ceiling, "We've had a lot to deal with Rick"

"I know, and I've never needed you more"

She looked at him and felt a fluttering in her stomach. While they hadn't had sex for a while, she didn't feel any less for him. She was enjoying the way their relationship was redeveloping, and sex wasn't on the forefront of her mind. Though, she was still crazy about him, and he didn't have to do much to make her melt.

"There's only one rule"

She groaned.

"You're not allowed to wear anythan' that can get in my way. No underwear. No pants"

She frowned at him, "Great"

"Up you get", He moved off of her and laid on his back in the centre of the bed, "I haven't eaten in a while"

She sat up, "Rick, you're not even completely healed-"

"I'm not asking", He raised his eyebrow at her, "Now get over here"

She sighed, muttering a few incoherent curse words under her breath as she positioned her crotch over his mouth. He held her by her thighs as he held her in place and she shuddered when she felt him moan against her lips. She had forgotten how good he was at tending to her.

His tongue swept along her slit, gently awakening her centre, and she her eyes rolled shut as she prepared herself. Within seconds he had latched onto her clit and her hands found the headboard. Her hips seemed to have a mind of their own as the swivelled in time with his tongue. One of his hands held her thighs, while the other held her ass, massaging her cheek as she moved.

She was glad that they had the house to themselves as she had forgotten the meaning of volume control. She moaned and cursed as he worked his magic on her centre, his eyes watching her from between her legs.

She was wishing for the moment to last forever when his hand slid from her ass, his middle finger slipping between her cheeks. She frowned, though her eyes were still closed, wondering what he was doing. His finger dipped inside her and her back arched as his tongue circled her bundle of nerves. She felt a little disappointed when it didn't last long, but his mouth was back on her heat soon enough.

Then she felt his finger by her ass again, and her eyes snapped open. She looked down at him, and before she could even give him a questioning look, the tip of his finger slipped in and she gasped.

"Rick!", her movements stopped, but he held her in place as he finger pushed further. Her mouth hung open, and she was about to climb off him to read him the riot act, when his finger began to curl, and his tongue moved faster, and she felt her legs began to shake. She didn't think she'd enjoy such a sensation, but it was sending her through space.

His eyes never left her as he showed her his new trick. She wished she could continue to look at him but she was sure she was on the cusp of death. She cried out as her nails dug in the headboard, her whole body trembling above him as her orgasm hit her like a freight train. His tongue only began to slow its movements when she could hardly hold herself up anymore.

His released his hold on her and removed his finger from her ass, allowing her to fall beside him as she tried to catch her breath.

He turned on his side and propped himself up on his forearm, "You like that? I thought we'd try somethan' different…"

She stared at the ceiling as her breathing regulated, "Well… it's was different"

He grinned as he sat up to kneel, pulling her closer to him by her calves, "No surprises this time"

She narrowed her eyes at him as he leaned over her again.

"I promise", He insisted as he rested on his forearms and dipped his head to kiss her, his length already at her entrance.

His tongue danced with hers, and she was excited for him all over again. He teased her, his hips moving only so slightly so he hovered by her heat. She wrapped her legs around him, urging him inside.

He broke the kiss, his face only an inch away from hers, "Yeah?"

"Rick.", She bit out.

"You know what I wanna hear", He teased, biting his lips as his eyes studied hers, "Not the usual stuff either"

She could have sighed, but instead pursed her lips, her eyes filled with lust, "Fuck me please, Sheriff"

He thrust within her, as he groaned, "That's what I'm talking about"

Her eyes rolled shut again as he impaled her, feeling every inch of him in her centre. He rocked against her, hardly withdrawing himself so she felt filled.

"I need this", He breathed in her ear as she laced her arms around his neck, "I can't resist you…"

She could barely concentrate as his movements became more purposeful, slamming his member deep within her.

"I won't ever get enough of you…"

Her fingers combed their way through his hair as she cradled his head, basking in his affection.

"I'll always need you…in every way..."

She was lost beneath him, his scent invaded her nostrils, his touch was overwhelming, his words echoed in her head. She was drowning in her King, and she'd refused to come up for air.

…

Michonne pulled on a black tunic dress as she dressed for the day. She was tired, and still a little sore from a rampant morning with Rick, but he wanted them to go out to lunch. They hadn't gone out for a meal for quite some time, especially with just the two of them, so she obliged.

She slipped into her high wedge heeled sandals and left the bedroom, knowing Rick was already waiting downstairs.

His eyebrow raised as she descended the steps, and she gave him a curious look, "What?"

He ran his hand up the side of her hip, and stopped when he felt the lace fabric. He sighed, slipping both hands under her dress and tugging them off. She watched him with disbelief, though still stepped out of them when he reached her feet.

"That's better", He grinned as he shoved them in his back pocket.

"There better not be a breeze", She warned as she stepped past him and headed to the front door.

"I sure hope there is", He chuckled, following behind her.

The drive was a peaceful one, as they sat in a comfortable silence. She held his hand in hers, striking the side of his thumb with hers.

"You think it'll be like this when the kids leave?"

He glanced at her, "I told you, Carl's not leaving"

She snickered, "Seriously, Rick"

He smiled as he looked out the windshield, "I imagine so… but I still think they'll be bothering us constantly"

"That's true"

"Judith will come over to complain-"

"Carl will come over to sulk-"

"And we're going on vacation", He breathed, "We'll leave them and go to the beach-"

"We can't do that. Carl will definitely sulk and Judith will come looking for you"

"It's fine, we'll just hide at the top of a palm tree or somethan'"

She cackled at his joke, and he smiled as he glanced at her. They were both in high spirits as they arrived at the Café, and both in very flirtatious mood. They took a seat in a small booth and quickly placed their orders.

"You like this right?", Rick asked as he rested his hand on her leg, his thumb stroking her knee, "Having a little time to ourselves?"

"I do like this a lot…", She agreed.

"Then why didn't you just let me win?"

Her face fell, "Why the hell would I just let you win?"

"Because my win was for the both of us, your win was just for you"

"You were always complaining about where I did my work-"

"Not in the bedroom. That was my only complaint"

"Well if I have an office then that would be my designated work area"

"It won't be just that though. And you know it. Even Carl knows it"

She frowned as she sat back, "What are you talking about?"

His brow furrowed as his gaze dropped to the table, "When you had an office before that's where you spent most of your time. I would barely see you and neither did he. And that was before we even started arguing"

She inhaled, quite surprised at his admission, "Do you think I'm going to lock myself away again?"

His eyes came up to meet hers, "Is that a ridiculous thang to think?"

"Well… yes and no…", She reasoned, "Because that was… a very different time Rick. Back then I was afraid of disappointing you and all I cared about was making you happy…"

He watched her with a confused expression, "So… wait-"

"Let me finish. I'm not saying I don't feel the same way now, it's just I feel like we communicate better, we get it all out in the open and we handle it. We still need a little work but I think we're on the right path"

"I'm still not comfortable with the idea-"

"That's fine. I understand, but you have to understand that I don't think it would be a problem, so we're going to have to come to some kind of agreement"

He sighed, but began stroking her knee again, "Alright, fine"

She rested her hand on his, "And we have an appointment with Aaron next week"

"Who?", He winced at her.

She threw her hands up in exasperation, "The counsellor! His name is Aaron, Rick!"

He rolled his eyes as he sat back in the booth, his hand sliding further down her thigh. His gaze dropped, and he began to grin.

"Don't you dare", She warned, her hand on his wrist.

"I'm not even hungry anymore", He raised an eyebrow at her.

She stared at him, "We'll eat first"

"I don't think I want to… I think I wanna play with you instead"

"Rick", She bit out, but he had already closed the space between them.

"Cross your legs", He instructed, his hand slipping around her waist.

She gave him a warning look but he was a determined man. He grabbed a hold of her knee and brought it over the other.

"It's less obvious this way, now sit forward"

She was whole heartedly against the idea but found herself sitting forward, resting with her forearms on the table. She nearly gasped when she felt his fingers brush her bare crotch, his hand inching beneath her.

"See?", He was in his element, "You can't even tell where my hand is…"

"We're in public", She almost whispered over her shoulder at him.

"And yet...you're still so wet", His middle and ring finger slipped in her entrance with ease, and she bit her lip to silence herself.

"And here are your meals!", The waitress smiled as she approached the table, "We have one grilled chicken combo and one crispy chicken combo"

She placed the meals in front of them, and Michonne tried her best to act as if Rick's fingers weren't knuckle deep inside her, "Thank you very much"

"No problem! Can I get you anythan' else?"

"We're fine, thanks", Rick smiled, giving the woman a single nod.

The waitress disappeared, and his fingers began rock within her. She couldn't even behave normally, she just stared at her plate, while her mind was focused on what the man beside her was doing.

"You're not hungry?", Rick teased as he took a fry from his plate.

"I'm going to kill-", His hand rocked harder as it turned a fraction, and his thumb found her clit. She bit her lips together as her breathing deepened.

"I'm sorry, what was that?"

She couldn't open her mouth, as there was a guttural moan at the back of her throat, dying to be freed. Her nails scratched at the table as the tension built between her legs. She didn't think she could have another orgasm. She didn't think her body could handle another orgasm, but she was on the verge of shattering once again.

Until his hand slowed to a stop, and he withdrew it, giving her ass a little tap as moved away from her. All she could do was look at him.

He cleaned each digit with his mouth, before giving her a devilish smile, "You alright?"

She straightened up as best she could, and tried to adjust her dress. Her crutch was slick from their secret endeavour and she hoped she could discreetly clean the seat before they left.

"You have no shame", She breathed as she sat back.

"But you loved every second of it", He raised his eyebrows at her, "You would have come right there if I didn't stop"

His words made her heat pulse, and she slowly inhaled as she gathered herself, "Just ten more hours"

"And we haven't even got to the fun part yet", He sipped his lemonade with glee.

She narrowed her eyes at him, a part of her worried and the other part undeniably excited, "What's the fun part?"

He put his glass down on the table and took her hand in his, pressing his lips against her palm before he whispered, "Role play"


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter 27:**

 _'But I'd be better for you'_

"As a man of law, I would have expected so much more from you…"

Rick's shaft throbbed, almost painfully, as he watched Michonne stroll seductively around the bed.

"So I'm going to have to teach you a lesson… because you have been a very, very bad sheriff"

She wore his navy uniform shirt open, and every so often he caught a glimpse of her breasts or bare folds in the soft candle light. She crawled on to the bed and straddled him, her crutch brushing against his erection.

"What do you have to say for yourself?"

"I'd do it again", He was being truthful.

She crossed her arms, "Now Sheriff, do you know how unnerving it is to poke around someone's ass without warning?"

"Were you unnerved when you was coming on my tongue?"

She bit her lip as she shook her head at him, "I'll be the one asking the questions here"

"Fine, but can I make a request?"

She narrowed her eyes at him.

"Can you move back just a little bit?", He winked at her.

She giggled as she arched her back, rubbing her heat against his member, "Like this?"

Rick groaned, wishing he didn't have the handcuffs on, which were tied to the bed over his head, "Just like that"

She quickly removed herself, straddling his torso again, "No."

He bit the inside of his cheek to stop himself from cursing.

"Now, first things first-"

They both looked towards the dresser when they heard her phone ring.

"Don't you dare touch that", He hissed.

"It could be an emergency", She hissed back, climbing off him.

"If it's not life or death then hang up. I mean it. Someone better be bleeding out and the only person with the same blood type is in this room-"

"Oh hush", She waved her hand dismissively at him as she answered, "Andrea?"

"Hang up", He whispered harshly at her.

She sent him a warning glance as she listened to her friend on the other end of the line.

Rick sighed as he dropped his head back on the pillow.

"What?... Well where are you?"

His head lifted off the pillow as he listened to the conversation.

"Where did Shane go?...", She sat on the end of the bed.

"Hang up", He bit at her again, nudging her with his foot.

"You want to stay over?"

"No!", Rick barked, "Put the phone by my ear"

Michonne whacked him, "Stop it Rick"

"Michonne, put the phone by my ear. Let me talk to her"

She hesitated, but still kneeled in the bed to hold the phone by his ear.

"Andrea? What's the problem?", Rick breathed sternly down the phone.

"That asshole left me at the bar!", She sat down the phone, "Lori called crying and he went running like a little puppy! He said he'd drop me home like that would make it all better-"

"Alright look, that was out of order and your completely allowed to be mad about it, but you know that that is the mother of his child and he has to handle her with care to avoid unnecessary problems", He exhaled, "Now with all things considered, I imagine you're probably very inappropriately dressed for six in the evening on a Sunday, so don't let this night go to waste. You get back in that bar and you do what you do best; you find some poor unsuspecting victim and you have the time of your life. Don't pay Shane any mind until he learns how to handle that side of his life. Alright?"

She was silent for a moment, "But-"

"Don't even think about it, just go have fun"

He could almost hear the cogs turning in her brain, "You know what, you're right. I should go and enjoy myself. Fuck Shane!"

"That's right, fuck Shane!", He looked up at Michonne as he moved his ear from the phone, "Hang up"

She took the phone from him, "Andrea?...Yeah...Okay, bye?"

Rick sighed, "Switch it off"

"Well… that was some pep talk you gave her", Michonne smirked as she slid her phone on to the nightstand.

He looked down at his partial erection, "Great"

"Oh… well, let's see if I can get the mood back", Michonne grinned as she dropped his shirt over her shoulders, letting it fall around her before she straddled him again.

He raised his eyebrow at her, "It's already back"

She looked down between them, "What the hell Rick?"

"It don't take much. All you have to do is look at me", He grinned.

She giggled, "I can't stand you"

"You don't need to stand… just sit right on it"

"Is that what you want?", She tilted her head at him as she began to roll her hips on his shaft.

He sucked air between his teeth, "Take the cuffs off me"

"No.", She shook her head playfully, "I like it like this"

"Michonne-"

"Yes?", She sang, holding him in place as she slowly swallowed him whole, her eyes rolling shut as he filled her.

He knew he was meant to be the submissive one in their role play, but he couldn't help himself. He planted his feet flat on the bed with his knees up, and thrust upwards, causing her to gasp. She looked down at him with a questioning glance.

"You think I need my hands for this?", He bit his lip as he thrust her into her again, her cry sending shivers down his spine.

"Rick", She hissed, slipping her hands in the small space between his head and his arms to rest on the mattress, "I'm controlling this round"

He thrust up again but she met him halfway, slamming her hips against him. He bit back a curse word as his balls tingled from the sensation.

"See?", She raised her eyebrows at him, her hips rolling back and forth as she rode him.

He loved when she was on top, it gave him the perfect view of her, but it also put him in a tough position, as he wasn't always guaranteed to last as long as he wanted.

She swivelled her hips, her walls clenching around him as she moved. He tried to pace himself, he closed his eyes and tried to take his mind elsewhere, but it was impossible. Her moans were always too sensual for him, dripping with ecstasy as they rolled from her lips. It made him want to drill her; to hear her cry out in desperation for him, but he was in no position for such a thing.

She sat up, her hand on his chest as she began to bounce on him. He watched her with hooded eyes, almost panting in time with her movements.

"You like that?", She breathed, a wicked smile tracing her lips as she began to roll her hips again.

"You know I do", He growled between gritted teeth.

She climbed off him, and Rick whimpered, ready to protest, when she took his member into his mouth. He almost choked on his tongue.

"God dammit!", His eyes snapped shut as she sucked on him, her hand stroking the base of his shaft while her mouth worked the tip. He had forgotten how good she was with her mouth, and it was a bittersweet moment, because he knew he wouldn't be able to enjoy it for long.

"Shit", He lifted his head to look at her, and he instantly regretted it, as she looked right back at him as she ran her tongue around his tip, her hand still pumping his length.

He lost it.

His member jerked in her hand and her mouth covered him just in time as he released his load. A guttural moan left him and his fists balled up as he emptied himself for a countless time. While the day had been everything he wanted, he was starting to question how he'd be able to carry on with his life, knowing he wouldn't be able to end every day in such a manner.

"How was that?"

He exhaled tiredly.

She giggled, straddling him again, "Now we can take these off"

She leaned over and grabbed the keys from the nightstand and undoing the cuffs. His arms fell either side of him lazily.

She cupped his face, "Nice way to end the night?"

He frowned at her, "We still have a few hours left"

Her face fell and she sat up straight, "What?"

He shrugged, "It ain't midnight yet"

"You literally just-"

"Give me another ten minutes and I'll be ready", He smiled innocently at her.

She looked at him as if he were speaking Latin.

"Come on, I'm thirsty", He held her waist as he pulled them off the bed, "When was the last time we got to walk around the house naked?"

She thought about it, "Months?"

"Exactly", He stressed, opening the bedroom door.

They strolled down the stairs in their bare glory and went straight to the kitchen. Michonne made her way to the pantry while Rick found himself in front of the fridge.

"I want to file for a restraining order against Lori".

Rick frowned as he grabbed a bottle of water, "Where did that come from?"

"I've been thinking about it for a while. I don't want her hanging around anymore", She insisted with a shrug, "If Carl wanted a relationship with her then I'd understand but he doesn't so she needs to stay away unless he changes his mind"

He nodded as he considered it, closing the fridge, "Alright"

She popped a marshmallow in her mouth and joined him, "And I want to arrange a sleepover with Milly. Let her stay the night with the kids"

He froze.

"Yes, Rick. That means Shane has to come here"

He groaned as he closed the cap on the bottle.

"He'll drop her off and pick her up. That's it"

"Judith and Carl ain't going over-"

"Of course not. Lori likes to turn up unannounced over there", She shook her head at the thought as she took his water from him.

"Good", He sighed, wrapping his arm around her middle and grabbing her thigh with his free hand.

"Oh my god", She groaned.

He sang as he put her on the counter, "I'm ready"

"I'm tired… and sore"

He buried his face in her neck, "You want me to kiss it better first?"

She hummed a response when he started to kiss and bite at her skin, "I'm not that sore"

He smirked, slipping his hand between her legs, "Alright, my turn"

…

"Negan's court date's been set. If you're up to going-"

Rick raised an eyebrow at Daryl, "I wouldn't miss it for the world"

"I figured', Daryl smirked, "Oh, I heard Peletier got two years"

Rick lip curled in disgust, "Only two years?"

"Yeah. He got sentenced last week"

He shook his head, "Well ain't that great"

Both of them turned to the living room doorway when they heard Judith giggling, and saw her brother carrying her on his shoulders, ducking down so she didn't bang her head on the doorframe.

"You better not drop her", Rick warned.

"I won't", Carl grinned, holding her hands in his as he joined his father on the couch.

"Daddy can you carry me next?", Judith beamed at him.

Rick helped pull her off Carl, "I'm surprised you don't have vertigo from the way your brother throws you around"

"What's Vertigo?", She stared at him.

"It's when you get real dizzy", He answered vaguely, sitting her on his lap.

"Oh…", He could tell by the way her eyes fell and her brow furrowed, that she was loading up another question for him, "Can we go camping?"

He wasn't expecting that, however, "Camping?"

"That's my girl", Daryl grinned proudly, "She wants to be out there with nature"

"Can we?", Carl raised his eyebrows at him, "All of us?"

Rick didn't particularly have a problem with the idea, but he imagined it to be quite the experience with his family, "You know camping means we sleep outside?"

Carl and Judith nodded, as if the notion was something they would be perfectly fine with. Rick looked to Daryl, who genuinely seemed excited and the idea.

"Well since you all want to go-"

"Yes! When? When can we go? Can we go today daddy?", Judith's eyes were wide with anticipation.

He looked back to Daryl, "This weekend?"

Daryl nodded, "That's fine by me. I'll let my girls know"

Carl's eyes narrowed, "You think mom would-"

"No. She wouldn't want to do it at all, that's why you're gonna ask her", Rick raised his eyebrows at his son, "There's more chance of her agreeing to it"

His son nodded, ready to take on the task.

"Are we going in the woods? Are we going fishing too? What do we eat? Do we have to kill anything?", Judith's line of questions didn't seem to end.

Rick chuckled, "I think your uncle Daryl can answer all that for you"

Judith turned to the other man, and hopped off her father, scurrying over to him in the recliner, and jumping on his lap. She wore a serious expression as she wait for him to inform her.

"Alright, we'll be in the woods and we can go fishing if you want to? But that means you have to cook it for us?", Daryl teased.

"I'll do it", She nodded excitedly.

"Are you sure you're ready for this dad? You're not really… the outdoors type either?", Carl grimaced.

Rick was offended, "I'll have you know I grew up in those woods"

"You lived on a farm", the teenager countered while Daryl snickered behind Judith.

"The farm was next to the woods", Rick deadpanned, "Don't worry. I'll teach you a few thangs"

"Are there bears in the woods?", Judith eyes her uncle cautiously.

Daryl shook his head, "No bears am afraid, but there's all types of deer's, raccoons and possums-"

Rick nudged Carl, "Leave all that out when you ask your mother"

Carl grinned, "Got it".

Rick quickly sent Daryl a knowing look, and his friend took his cue, "Come on Jude's, I'm gonna take you on a little nature trail in the yard"

Judith hopped off her Uncle's lap and sped out the room, while Daryl followed after her at a slower pace.

"Listen, I wanted to talk to you about… well everythan' that's happened… how you feel about it all?", Rick asked as he turned to face his son.

"You mean losing my brother, grandfather, girlfriend and having Lori try to take me from you guys?", Carl listed.

Rick winced as he nodded, "Yeah?"

Carl shrugged, "It all sucks but… like you said, no one's exempt from loss right? I mean there's people out there that have lost more and I'm just grateful I have you guys"

"You'll always have us. You can talk to us about anythan' and I hope you always remember that"

"I do…but it's not always easy… you like to shout a lot and I don't like making mom cry"

Rick's eyes darted behind his son, "That's very true but it's because we care so much about you that we go a little overboard"

"A little?"

"Anyway", He narrowed his eyes at the teen, "Just talk to one of us or both of us whenever you want. Even if you're scared of what our reaction will be, we would still rather hear it from you… and you know your mother hates finding out stuff"

"Yeah, She really does…", Carl began to nod, then stopped at her squinted at his father, "Is mom pregnant?"

Rick's eyes widened, "What?"

"Is she?", His son urged.

Rick was taken aback by the question, "No? Why'd you ask?"

"Oh…", Carl's eyes wondered in the area around his father, "I heard her say something last night when she was on the phone and I thought… she doesn't really complain about that unless she's pregnant-"

"What did she say?", He sat forward, eager to know.

"Something about the smell of the air freshener is making her feel sick"

Everything stopped in that moment for Rick. He wasn't really staring at anything in particular, but his eyes were glued to the other side of the room as he thought about it. His son was right, Michonne rarely ever complained about the smell of something unless it was really bad or she was pregnant.

"She is isn't she?", Carl tilted his head at his father, trying to gain his attention.

Rick's mouth hung open, "It's likely… very likely… but I don't think she's...I don't think she thinks she is?"

"Would it be a good thing If she is? I mean… would you both be happy about it?"

He looked at Carl, "Of course… with everythan' else, it would be a shock but… we'd be happy regardless"

The teen nodded, seemingly pleased with that answer, "Are you going to tell her?"

Though Rick had told his son they would be happy regardless, deep down he was worried. If it did in fact turn out that Michonne was pregnant, he didn't know how well she would take it, so soon after losing a baby. While she told him she wanted more children, he definitely knew she didn't expect to have another child within such close proximity. His mind raced.

"That's the next hurdle son"

…

"I've been thinking…"

Rick tore his eyes away from Michonne's stomach to look at her, "Go on"

"How about we set up an open office in the living room? There's more than enough space and I'd be in the-"

"Sure. Okay", He nodded, his eyes falling back to her abdomen as she continued to change for bed.

Her head jerked back as she eyed him, "Really?"

"Yeah. That's fine"

She folded her arms over her chest, "What's going on?"

His eyes darted back up to meet hers, and he chose his words carefully, "Did you get your… lady time this month?"

She pulled a comical face at him, "You still call it Lady time?"

He rolled his eyes, "Answer the question"

"Yes, Rick. I had my lady time this month", She studied his face, "Why?"

"Oh…", He felt more disappointed than he had originally thought, but still found himself wondering, "Was it… normal?"

She looked at him like he was crazed, "What the hell Rick? Why? Tell me now, why are you so concerned with my period?"

He sighed, "Any chance you could be… pregnant?"

She froze, staring at him for a few moments before her eyes sailed away from him.

"Didn't you have a little… lady time when you were pregnant with Judith? But it wasn't really a-"

"Why? Why would you think I'm pregnant?", She snapped, looking back at him.

"I didn't really… Carl asked… He said you were complaining about the smell of somethan' and you usually turn into a bloodhound when you are pregnant-"

"So you're having little secret meetings with my son about my uterus?", She winced at him.

Rick stared at her for a moment, "You're doing that thang you do when you get angry about somethan' else while avoiding the bigger issue"

"No I'm not-"

"Yes you are. What are you afraid of Michonne?"

She groaned as she turned from him, grabbing his t-shirt from the bed, shoving it on.

"Don't do that with me-"

"I'm tired and I'm going to bed", She answered flatly, pulling back the comforter on her side of the bed.

"You said you want more children…", He threw the comment out, hoping to catch her attention, "Carl asked me if we'd be happy if you were and I the one old him we would be but I honestly don't know how you'd take it if you were"

She switched off the lamp and laid down with her back facing him.

Rick wanted to curse but settled for dropping his head back against the headboard with a sigh, "I know what you're thinking... I know what you'd be worried about if you are and I don't blame you… I think I'll be just as scared as you… but I'd be better for you"

He heard her huff, before she scooted closer to him. He sank down beside her and wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him.

"We don't need to talk about it yet. But I think we should check? There's no harm in that right?", He whispered in her ear.

She nodded, holding his hand tighter.

He kissed her shoulder, realising he was more excited about the idea of another child than he would have thought.


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter 28:**

 _'It's alright… I promise it is'_

"Are you not done yet? You're like a damn horse"

Michonne tried her best not to laugh at Rick as she put the cap back on the pregnancy test, "You're an ass"

"Give it to me", He held out his hand as he pushed away from the bathroom counter.

She flushed the toilet and nudged him out the way as she washed her hands, "Three minutes"

He nodded, staring at the screen on the tiny device. She stood beside him as she dried her hands, also staring at the device, her heart thumping hard in her chest. They had purposely waited until the children had gone to bed that night, just so they could get it done with no interruptions.

"The longest three minutes of my life", Rick muttered as he dropped his head back, looking at the ceiling, "How the hell did those get up there?"

She looked up and squinted at the ceiling, "Are those stickers?"

"Yeah... Probably when Carl's carrying Judith around", Rick shook his head, putting the test down, "Come on, take them off"

"You can reach that", She snorted, stepping away from him.

"I'm still healing so come here"

"Oh please!"

He grabbed her by her middle, despite her protests and lifted her up, "Just tear them off"

"Oh hush", She hissed, pulling the stickers off one at a time, "He must have put her on his shoulders"

"You going for the au natural look?"

She looked down at him, confused, until she saw that he was staring at her armpit. She tilted her head at him, "And if I was?"

He shrugged, "You know I wouldn't really care, but I'd appreciate a warning. I thought it was one of those fluffy hair clips of Judith's"

She whacked him, "I haven't had time to wax anything"

"That's a lie", He shook his head.

"Okay I haven't had a chance to wax _everything_ ", She growled as she pulled the last sticker off, "Besides, I'm not the only one that's a bit furry"

He narrowed his eyes at her, "I like my beard like this"

"I don't mind the beard. In fact I think I like the beard, just not this… thick", She stroked the side of his face, "You caveman"

"You love this caveman though", He grinned, still holding her up.

She rolled her eyes.

"Stop that", He warned, "We talked about this with the counsellor"

"Alright, fine. I do love my caveman very much", She insisted as she cupped his face.

"How much?"

"...from here to the moon"

He pulled a face at her.

"What? That's a lot of love! How much more do you want?"

"I love you from here to the furthest ends of the galaxy", He relayed effortlessly.

She snorted loudly, "Not everything's a competition"

"No it's not because I'd always win", He taunted turning her to the counter, "Grab the thang"

She rolled her eyes at second time as she reached down and grabbed the test. Her mouth fell agape as she stared at the tiny screen.

Rick read her reaction for a few moments before asking, "Baby?"

She slowly nodded, "Baby."

He grinned wildly, spinning her around as he kissed her stomach. Something a about seeing how happy he was made her stomach flutter, though she wouldn't be surprised if it wasn't from being spun in the air.

"We're having a baby", He whispered as he lowered her in his arms until they were face to face.

"We are…", She replied, a little weaker.

His eyes trailed all over her face, "It's alright. I promise it is"

She was about to say something when the sound of little footsteps caught both of their attention. They looked towards the door as it opened and in stepped Judith in her Barbie pyjamas, rubbing her eyes.

"Daddy you need to go, I need the toilet", She rasped tiredly.

Rick's head jerked back as he put Michonne down, "Why just me?"

She frowned at him, "Because you're a boy"

Michonne could see he wasn't going to argue with her a about that, "Alright then"

He stepped around his sleepy daughter and out into the hallway as Judith closed the door behind him.

Michonne smirked at her, "That's my girl"

…

"Camping? Really? What the hell for?", Andrea's face was a picture of horror.

"The kids", Michonne reasoned.

Andrea rolled her eyes, "Get them a tent and throw it in the back yard"

"You're coming Andrea. I'm not suffering alone", Michonne insisted, "And besides, we won't be far from Rick's parents' house so if worse comes to worst, you can go there, okay?"

"You don't even own a pair of hiking boots!"

"We can buy some. See! An excuse to shop!"

"Oh yeah, just what I had in mind", Andrea rolled her eyes.

"Ladies"

Both of them looked towards the office door and saw Shane stood there, his eyes darting between them almost nervously. Andrea rose from her chair and flicked her hair as she marched out the room, walking right past him. He shook his head as he sighed, stepping into the office.

"Sorry to turn up unannounced but I'm on my lunch break and I just wanted to have a little talk with you if you had a chance?", Shane asked, shifting from foot to foot.

"Sure", Michonne motioned for him to take a seat in Andrea's now vacant seat, "What's wrong?"

"I'm sure Andrea already told you about… Lori"

She nodded, "She did…"

"Well, Lori called me crying and… the reason I went it because I thought she'd realised that she can't keep doing what she's doing with y'all...I know I shouldn't have left Andrea but… with Lori, I've seen how her mind works and the extent she'll go to get what she wants so I just have to put up with her…"

"We figured that was the case", She offered sympathetically.

"Yeah, well… I spoke to her and, she said some thangs about her and Rick… and I just didn't know how to take it"

Michonne's head reeled back as she raised her eyebrows at him.

"She said she loves him? She wants to be with him?"

"Oh… Yeah, she confessed her love to him when he was in the hospital", Michonne explained dryly.

Shane's brow furrowed.

"Yep. I heard all about it"

He groaned as he rubbed the back of his neck, "Look, I was wondering if I could get some advice...about how to deal with her…"

Michonne squinted at him, "What do you mean?"

"It's as if she's obsessed with y'all, she's always talking about Carl or Rick and she's even said some thangs to Milly…", He shook his head, "I learned the hard way that she was delusional, manipulative, calculating.. and I just thought she was just not a nice person but over the last few years...especially the last few months… I've noticed that she's even more irrational and erratic...and I'm starting to think she's not well… at all"

Michonne listened to him, storing away his admission.

"I want to know if I could get her to see a doctor or somethan'? Have someone talk to her and see that it's not just me that thinks somethan' else is going on with her?"

"...Well, She could either volunteer to go in... which I doubt… but the other options are for her to be taken by paramedics or police…", Michonne offered, "But I think she'd have to be seen as a danger to herself or others for that to happen. Do you think that's a possibility?"

Shane's eyes sailed behind her as she thought about it, "I know she'd never hurt Milly… but I don't know If I could say the same for the rest of us. She's slapped Andrea before and nearly lost her life for it"

She nodded, wondering what other advice she could offer him, "I don't think there's any harm in asking her to follow you there as an officer? I mean she has the right to refuse but if you tell her you're worried about her, you might be able to get her there"

He sighed again as he sat back, "I can try but… I doubt it… and I'm sorry about everythan' she's doing good y'all, I just don't get why she won't quit. She's like a dog with a bone"

"Yeah… well we're handling it as best we can so don't worry about it"

"Well I won't keep you, thanks for hearing me out", He rose from his seat tiredly.

"Uh, hey, why don't we do that sleepover next weekend? If you don't mind?", Michonne tried to leave the conversation on a better note.

Shane nodded, "Oh yeah, that would be great actually, if y'all don't mind having her?"

"Of course not, we'd be more than happy to, and the kids haven't seen her in so long"

"That's great then, she'd love that", the man finally smiled and Michonne felt better for it, "Uh, where's Andrea's office?"

"Two doors down", She informed, "I think it might help if you tell her what you told me… but that's just my opinion"

"I'll take all the advice I can get", He huffed heading out the room, "Thanks again!"

"No problem!"

Michonne had busied herself with paperwork after Shane left her office, though their conversation did play on her mind. She dreaded having to tell Rick, as she knew how he'd react to the fact that Shane came and saw her. She did want to ruin the high he was on since learning of her pregnancy. She was struggling with the thought of a new addition so soon, but he was giving her strength to overcome her fear.

A part of her was desperate to tell Andrea, but she thought it would be better to wait, so chose to keep that to herself as she made her way to her friend's office with paperwork she needed help on.

"Hey Andrea, what is- Oh my god!", Michonne gasped as she caught sight of Andrea and Shane together on her desk.

"Shit!", Shane breathed as he removed himself from between the blonde woman's legs.

"Great", Andrea threw her hands up in the air, "And we were almost at the finish line"

Michonne turned, and virtually sprinted back out the room, "Oh god"

"Oh, there you are", Milton sighed as he walked up to her, "Where's Andrea? We have to go over-"

"Andrea is a little busy right now", She whispered as she held on to the door handle, "Let's go to my office instead"

"What?"

"Move it Milton"

…

After an eventful afternoon, Michonne arrived home from work feeling like she needed to bathe her eyes in salt water after what she'd seen at work. Her friend seemed to see the funny side of the incident, while she did not.

"Hey mom", Carl greeted as he planted a few flowers beside the porch.

"Your dad still has you working huh?", She tufted as she looked down at him.

"This one I don't mind so much. It's actually quite cool", He smirked.

Michonne stared at him, "Well.. never thought I'd hear those words leave your mouth"

"Me neither"

"Have you eaten?"

"Yeah. Maggie's here, she brought some stew that Patricia made"

"Oh okay", Michonne nodded, "Alright, well don't stay out here too long, my little gardener"

"I won't"

She stepped into her home and was greeted by Cleo, who was crawling along the hallway, but stopped when she saw Michonne.

"Hey Sweetie pie!" She smiled as she put down her belongings, ripping off her heels before she crouched, "Where are you going?"

Cleo stood up and excitedly ran over to her as quickly as she could. Michonne scooped her up in her arms and carried her to the living room, where Maggie was sat with Ally and Judith on the floor, while Rick sat with Demi on his lap.

"It's like a small day-care in here", She joked as she made her way to the couch, "How are you Maggie?"

"Tired. Very tired", Maggie sighed, "But otherwise good"

"That's the spirit", She put Cleo back down on the floor when she sat next to Rick.

Demi was taking great delight in lying on Rick's lap, her tiny feet kicking at him, "We need to get this one in a pool to do some laps"

"There you go dishing out jobs again", Michonne shook her head as she took the baby from him, "Hey there honey bun"

"Carl's doing a good job out there"

"He is. I might need him to come and do my lawn", Maggie agreed, "Glenn tries but… it's not his specialty"

Rick chuckled, "We'll send him right over"

"Oh, I was just telling Rick that there's a fair coming to town next week. We should take the kids"

"That's a good idea, we'll have Milly that weekend", Michonne agreed as she bounced Demi on her lap.

"We will?", Rick raised an eyebrow at her, "You talked to Shane?"

"I did… he came by the office today"

"What for?", Rick said sternly, causing Judith to turn and look at him, "Sorry sweetie"

Judith eyed him, before turning back to Ally.

"He wanted to talk about Lori", Michonne explained.

Rick snarled, while Maggie exhaled loudly, "I wish y'all would wait until I left to have these conversations. You know I don't know where to look"

Michonne giggled, "Tell that to the bear over here"

"I'm just saying that I don't like-", Rick began.

"I know. But he just needed some advice, then he went to see Andrea and I ended up seeing the both of them in a way that I didn't want to"

Rick looked at her confusion, then disgust, while Maggie's jaw dropped, "No way! At work?"

"At work", She breathed as she shook her head.

"I don't even wanna think about it", Rick shuddered.

"I need to pee!", Ally announced as she stood up hurriedly.

"Oh thank God, at least you're telling me this time", Maggie took her daughter's hand and led her out the room.

"How you feeling?", Rick asked quietly, resting his hand on her knee.

"Good", She smiled.

"We have a lot to talk about…", Rick's sentence trailed off when they both noticed Judith staring at them. She wore a curious expression as she slowly turned back to her game.

Michonne's eyes slid over to Rick, "I don't think we can keep this quiet for long"

"Nah, I don't think so either… we should probably tell Carl. He suspects so anyway… he's really attuned to everythan-"

"He gets that from me", Michonne grinned.

Rick frowned at her, "I've given it some thought and he actually gets it from me. I'm better at reading people than you"

"How'd you come to that conclusion? Was it when you were gonna let your girlfriend get away with blowing up her house?", She narrowed her eyes at him.

"Is that all you can think of? That one moment of bad judgement?"

"Lori? How about that? The tape? What else Rick?"

His eyes darted to Maggie as she walked back in the room, "Maggie, who's more attuned to other people, me or Michonne?"

Maggie froze, looking back and forth at them until she shook her head, "Nope. Not today. You can leave me out of that battle"

"Because she knows it's me and she doesn't want to hurt your feelings", Michonne teased as cuddled Demi.

Rick scowled at her, "If anythan' she wouldn't wanna hurt your feelings, seeing as we were friends first"

"Oh, here we go", She rolled her eyes, "Hold the baby while I go get changed"

"Come over here Demi, your aunt has to go back to her human form", He snickered as he took the infant.

"But not before I eat your uncle", She grinned, though her eyes were sending Rick at warning.

Maggie sighed as she sat back down with Judith and Ally, "Please don't scare my child"

"We won't"

Michonne left the room and went up to change into her lounge wear. She couldn't help but inspect her stomach for a moment in the mirror, her fingers tracing over her caesarean scar. She had avoided looking at it for quite some time, but it was something she knew she had to come to turns with. She knew Rick would be more than happy to talk to her about it and she treasured him for that.

"You all done?", She asked as she stepped out the room and saw Carl coming up the stairs.

"Yeah. It looks pretty good out there", He beamed.

"Yeah, you could start a little business. You know everyone around here is so house proud"

Carl seemed to think about it, "I could…"

Michonne shifted awkwardly, "Your dad told me about… your little… prophecy?"

Her son frowned, his lip curling as he looked confused.

She huffed, "I am pregnant"

His eyes lit up, "Really? I was right?"

"You were", She smiled, holding out his arms to him.

He embraced her, careful not to get her covered in dirt, "I knew it"

"You did. Before I did", She smirked, rubbing his back.

"Are you scared?"

"Yeah, you?"

"Yeah...Dad's going to be crazy protective now, isn't he? I mean crazier..."

She smiled as she sighed, "He is. But we can handle him"


	29. Chapter 29

**Chapter 29:**

 _'I was ready to tell her I love her after five minutes'_

"How's it feel to be back?"

Rick sighed, sitting back in his chair at his desk, "Like a breath of fresh air... that I'll soon regret taking"

"Oh, you will", Leon teased, "We got a shit load of paperwork for you"

"Great", Rick said dryly, "How many we got in there?"

"Only six right now", Leon scratched the back of his head, "We also got wind of a request that we think you should know about…"

"A request?", Rick winced at him.

"Yeah… I'm sure you remember Terry…"

"What about him?"

"He sent Michonne a visit request form from the penitentiary… she should probably get it soon"

Rick inhaled slowly, "Alright. I'll be sure to set it on fire when she does get it"

Leon bit back a smile, "He obviously forgot what you did to him"

"I'd love to remind him but I'm just too busy", He almost growled.

"Oh hey! Great to see you're back on the job", Rosita announced as she walked in the room, "Your fiancée said you'd be in today"

Rick frowned at her, "When did you speak to her?"

"I saw her yesterday at the flower shop when I was getting your lovely arrangement", She grinned as she pointed at them on his desk.

"Thanks again for that. And the cake", He smiled, though his mind was working overtime as he tried to figure out why Michonne was in the flower shop.

"No problem. I need you to sign off on these though", She dropped a small mountain of papers on his desk.

"Oh... just great", Rick flicked through them, while Rosita spun on her heel and left the room.

"We got a request from the high school to go in for the career day at the start of the semester, How'd you feel about that?", Leon raised his eyebrows at him.

Rick shrugged, "Sure. Carl will probably hate me for it but I'll go. Be great if they ask for Michonne to go in too, we could both embarrass him"

Leon chuckled, "That's one way to ruin a fifteen year old's social life"

"How y'all doing?", Shane appeared in the doorway, looking directly at Rick. Leon was on his feet and out the room before either of them could say anything else.

Rick sat back in his seat again, "All good, thanks"

"Good to hear. I got that last payment for you", Shane stepped over to the desk and handed it to him.

He nodded, chucking it down, "Thanks. I heard you went to talk to Michonne about Lori?"

"Yeah… needed some advice about it all", Shane rubbed his head as he took a step back, "She told me how she felt about you and all that and it just… I don't know"

"You really think she needs a doctor?", Rick squinted at him.

"I do. I mean, what else can be the problem?"

"I think she just wants what she feels like she lost and it's killing her that she can't snap her fingers to get it all back", Rick shrugged, "She's always had that mentality. She thinks the world owes her somethan'... that she deserves everythan' she wants-"

"She's even more delusional now-"

"Oh I know that. She stood in front of me and told me that her, Milly, Carl and myself should leave to start our own family", Rick raised his eyebrows at the other man, "I already have my family, and if their names aren't Michonne, Carl or Judith, then they ain't mine"

Shane was frowning at him, his face registering nothing but shock.

"You need to get full custody of Milly. You're tip toeing around Lori so you don't upset her because you know she could just up and leave with her again, and that's not fair on you or your daughter. She can't do that to the two of you"

"I can't take Milly away from her mother-"

"That's all good and well, but I can bet my left arm that if I called up Lori and told her I wanted to be with her, and told her 'come on let's take the kids and leave', she'd be ready with bags packed, not even giving you a second thought".

Shane watched him with a pensive expression as he bit his bottom lip.

"I'm not telling you to keep Milly from her, I'm telling you your daughter needs to be around the more stable parent, and that's you. So you step up for her sake", Rick's knee bounced beneath the table as he drove his message to Shane, "If you really think there's a problem, you tell that to a judge and they'll have someone see to her, hopefully get her the help she needs if she is having problems, but otherwise keep your focus on your daughter, because I know she's telling Milly thangs that she doesn't need to hear and one of those messages already got through to my daughter, which I'm still very mad about"

Shane nodded, "I know, and I'm sorry about that"

"It's not you that needs to apologise for it", Rick sighed, raking his fingers through his hair, "It's all her"

"I hear what you're saying. I do. It's just a lot to handle"

"It is…", Rick frowned as his eyes sailed around the room, "Where's Lori getting the money for this case?"

Shane matched his expression, "I don't even know. I have thought about it but… she's secretive"

Rick nodded, biting the inside of his cheek, "Alright, fine"

"Listen, I really appreciate y'all for still allowing my Milly to have a relationship with your kids, even after everythan'... I'd hate for her to suffer from it all and she really does miss Carl and Judith"

"Yeah well, she ain't done anythan' wrong, she's just a kid"

"That's right. Thanks", She backed out the room, tapping the doorframe as he walked out.

Rick groaned as he looked up to the ceiling, muttering to himself, "I should have stayed at home"

…

"Daddy!"

Rick grinned as Judith greeted him at the door. It was the one thing he always looked forward to when returning from work, and it was a routine he looked forward to resuming, "How are you my sweet little angel?"

"Grandma's here with that lady… she's got red lips", Judith whispered the last part, causing Rick to chortle.

"Really?" He whispered back, hanging up his windbreaker.

"Yeah", Judith nodded, "Aunt Drea said girls have red lips when they want to kiss boys. Does she want to kiss grandpa?"

Rick stared at his daughter with a slightly horrified expression, before crouching down in front of her, "Baby, listen to me, I need you to forget everythan' your aunt Drea has ever told you, okay?"

She frowned at him.

"Your aunt is… a little bit… she's just confused a lot of the time, so she says crazy thangs… so don't pay her any mind, okay?"

Judith slowly nodded.

"Why don't we go see grandpa and his… lady friend", He took her hand and led her to the living room.

Michonne's father was sat on the couch with Sharon, and they both greeted him warmly when he walked in. Michonne was sat in the recliner, and Rick took a seat on the arm of the chair while Judith ran over to her brother, who was sat on the other side of his grandfather, and sat on his lap.

"What's going on?", Rick asked, as he noticed that his soon to be father in law looked as if he was dying to say something.

"Well, we've got some big news", Donald grinned, glancing at Sharon.

Rick slowly moved his leg in front of Michonne's, just in case her father broke some news she wasn't ready to hear, and Rick would have to stop her from diving for the older woman.

"Well, we won some money!"

Rick breathed a sigh of relief, "Really?"

"Yep!", Sharon nodded excitedly, "On a scratch card!"

"Congratulations!", Michonne smiled, looking a little relieved herself.

"We already claimed it all, we were waiting until we actually had it before we did anything… but here", Donald held out a small rectangular shaped paper to Rick.

He already knew what it was, "I'm not taking that"

"Rick, you better take it", his father insisted, his eyes looking a little crazed.

He sighed, taking the paper. He looked at the amount and almost choked on nothing, "Jesus Christ"

Michonne's eyes widened from beside Rick, "No way! Dad take that back-"

"I'm a grown as-", her father glanced at the children, "I'm grown. Sharon's grown. We decided how we wish to spent it, and our families come first"

Rick shook his head, "We don't need-"

"We know that. We see that. You just got a brand new truck, we know you're doing fine, but that's not what this is about, it's us telling you to treat yourselves, courtesy of us"

Rick looked to Michonne, who looked just as shocked as he felt, "Sir, we… this is… too much-"

"That's not all we did. You tell them this part", Donald urged, nudging Sharon.

"We are all going on a cruise! Five nights on a luxury ship to the Caribbean!", Sharon announced.

"What?", Carl's face lit up as he looked at them both.

"What?!", Michonne barked, sitting forward.

"What's that?", Judith asked her brother.

"It's a huge boat Judy!", He explained excitedly, causing Judith to catch the fever too, as she began to smile.

"That's right! We all get to stay in luxury grand suites with our own private balconies, and we'll be stopping at Turks and Caicos, the Dominican Republic-", Sharon was on the edge of her seat as she explained, "They have dancing, and a casino, a gym, pools, a cinema-"

"A whole week at sea!", Donald exclaimed, his eyes darting back and forth between Rick and Michonne.

Michonne hit Rick on his thigh, and he snapped out of his stunned state, "You didn't have to-"

"We booked it for the last week of summer so you have just over a week to get everything you need together, do whatever shopping you need to do", Sharon added, "We're taking a flight from Atlanta to the Miami to catch the ship from there on the Monday morning"

Michonne hit Rick again, "We don't even know-"

"Everything is already paid for, we even signed the kids up for the kids club they have there, so they'll both be with kids their own age-"

"And they have all kinds of stuff to keep them entertained!", Donald nodded in agreement.

Michonne hit Rick a third time and he snapped, "Alright! This… this is a lot to wrap our head around… I'm a little dizzy-"

"We even booked tickets for your mother, brother and nephew! We know we should have checked with them first, but we just wanted us to all go and have some fun as a family", Donald insisted with a smile so wide that Rick could barely see his eyes.

Rick was touched.

Michonne sighed, "Dad… you didn't need to do all this-"

"We wanted to. We've all had a tough time lately and so I thought, what better way to end it all with a vacation? All of us together, making memories? We can afford to do it, so we'll do it", Her father clapped his hands together.

Rick looked down at Michonne again, "I think I need to lay down"

"Me too", She huffed, resting her hand on his leg.

It all started to hit Rick later that night as he laid in bed, watching Michonne slowly pace the room as she went over everything that had happened that evening. She had remained quiet even after her father and his girlfriend left, and Rick was having a problem pinpointing what exactly was bothering her.

"Why do I feel like this Rick?"

"I've been waiting for you to tell me", He was truthful, "I mean, I understand, it's a big trip, and it's a lot of money… I might quit my job"

A faint giggle left her as she continued to pace, "I don't feel right taking it… it's my dad and his girlfriend's money for crying out loud, my mom hasn't even been dead a year yet-"

"You're not betraying your mom if that's what you're thinking-"

"Picture yourself in my position"

His eyes roamed the space around her as he did, "I'd probably kill the guy"

She threw her hands up in the air, "See!"

"That's different though. I'm irrational, hot headed, you're… well, actually you're pretty irrational too-"

"Rick-"

"I'm kidding!", He grinned at her, "Come here my beautiful, baby carrying lady"

She rolled her eyes as she sat on the bed with a bounce.

He wrapped his arm around her hips and pulled her to lay her head back on his shoulder, "You wanna know what I think?"

"Tell me"

"I think, that your mom would have been happy that he moved on. She was one of the most selfless people I knew, and she would have wanted him to have someone to look after him like she did. I can bet my left leg that she wouldn't have wanted him to be alone for too long"

"You think so?"

"I do…"

She slowly began to nod, "...What about your dad?"

Rick frowned as he thought about it, "My dad would have expected us to look after my mother. He would have said she doesn't need anyone else but her boys… he was who I got my irrational side from"

She chuckled, resting her hand on his cheek.

He turned his face towards it and kissed her palm, "I think we both need this little vacation, don't you?"

"Yeah. Maybe you're right…"

"I am… Now listen, tomorrow morning we're gonna go out and buy about fifty of those scratch cards-"

She burst out laughing, the kind of laugh that came from the pit of her stomach, and it was like music to his ears. Rick smiled at her, kissing her cheek and chuckling himself.

…

"Well I'm so glad to see you up and out Rick! I heard what had happened to you and I was more than happy to help move our sessions around until you were able to make it"

Rick eyed Aaron, "If you really wanted to help, you would have given us our money back"

Michonne whacked him on his leg, while Aaron sighed, "Well! Let's get started! I imagine that with your accident, it's probably brought the two of you even closer together…"

She nodded, "I think it has. We haven't had a really serious argument-"

"Except for when she beat me with a bunch of flowers while I was in the hospital", Rick reminded her with raised eyebrows.

"Oh… Yeah, I did do that", She agreed with not a shred of a remorse.

Aaron was frowning at them both, "What brought that on?"

"My son's birth mother is still in love with him. She brought him the flowers, told him how she feels, so I beat him with the flowers…"

"Oh dear… is there a reason you took it out on Rick?"

"Because it was his fault. He was nice to her, helped her out by giving her the money, and now she thinks he's in love with her too"

Aaron glanced at Rick, "Do you trust him?"

She squinted, "I do… but I guess I'm just...scared"

"Of what?", Rick looked at her with a furrowed brow.

"That you'll see something in her that you saw before and-"

"What?"

"Rick, please let Michonne finish", Aaron insisted, while Rick crossed his arms as he looked at her.

She hesitated, trying to find the words, "He was with her before me, they were together for years, they had my son together so I just get a little… paranoid… even more so now…"

"Why more now?"

She inhaled sharply as if she said something she shouldn't have, glancing at Rick, "Well… I guess we can tell you… I'm pregnant"

Aaron's eyes widened, "That's fantastic! Congratulations, I'm so happy for you both!"

"Thank you", she smiled, "But that's part of the problem, I think I get a little more… insecure when I'm pregnant…"

"Hormones and everything", Aaron nodded sympathetically, "Well Rick, what do you think about Michonne's admission?"

He groaned, "I guess I could understand why she feels that way but… I think it's ridiculous-"

"See?", She deadpanned.

"No, there's no ' _see_?', the reason I say it's ridiculous is because I was with Lori when I was young, we got together when we were in high school. I'm near enough forty now and I've only ever had eyes for you since I first saw you, I was ready to tell her I love her after five minutes"

"That is very sweet", Aaron nodded, "If you don't mind me asking, how old were you when you met each other?"

"I was twenty two. He was twenty five", Michonne answered.

"And Carl's birth mother was already gone at this stage?"

"She was. I wasn't even focused on dating before I saw her, but when I did, I'd already pictured the rest of our lives together", He admitted, smiling at Michonne.

"And was it the same for you Michonne?", Aaron asked, resting on his head on his hands as he listened to them both.

Her smile tightened, "It was…"

"She's lying", Rick corrected dryly.

"No… I did like him. I thought he was attractive… but I was young and in college and I just wanted to have fun-"

"She just wanted a one night stand-"

"Quiet!", She hissed.

Aaron seemed to bite back a chuckle, "Well, uh… obviously it all worked out for you both-"

"I trapped her with Carl", Rick nudged her and she snickered at him.

"I honestly am so glad to see how far the two have come since that first session. You're both on the road to a healthy relationship", Aaron's smile was wide, "Now, I understand that you're going camping this afternoon?"

"We are", Michonne nodded.

"That's great! How about we talk about a few activities you can do to keep building on that trust and continue on this more… peaceful path… and not hitting each other with anything…"

Rick bared his teeth, "Great".


	30. Chapter 30

**Chapter 30:**

 _'You psychopath'_

Michonne sat in the passage seat of Rick's truck, watching her family unpack all of their camping gear a few yards away. She hadn't found the will nor the strength to get out the vehicle just yet, as she wasn't particularly fond of nature up close. She watched Rick slowly make his way over to her, mentally preparing himself to deal with her, so she cracked the window only a few inches.

"Michonne?", He sighed, folding his arms over his chest, "Can you come out please?"

"No. I'm afraid I can't", She shook her head innocently.

"There are no bears, Michonne-"

"It's not just bears that I'm worried about Rick"

"You could walk to my mother's house from here. If you squint through those trees you can see it-"

"Rick. I am not into things like this, you know I'm not, and don't think I didn't know that you made Carl ask me to come-"

"Look, all I'd like you to do is get out the car. That's it. You can watch over everythan' while we set it up, okay?"

"I can see it all from here"

"Michonne. Please. I don't ask you for much-"

She looked at him with a horrified expression.

He rolled his eyes at her, "Alright, stop it, just come out the car, please?"

She huffed, closing the car window as she rested her hand on the door handle, "Come on Andrea"

"Nope", Andrea shook her head from the backseat, her eyes on her phone.

"Andrea-'", Michonne warned.

"Why?!", Andrea moaned, throwing her head back, "Can't I just sit here?!"

"No! We do this together now come on!"

The two of the sulked as the exited the truck, and Michonne ignored the fact that Rick locked the doors as soon as they were closed.

He draped his arm around her shoulders, "You're gonna love this, I promise-"

"If you let me or my babies get eaten by anything, I swear to god-"

He chuckled heartily, "What's gonna eat you? A possum? The most it can do is nibble on your toes-"

"That's not funny!", She smacked his hand off her shoulder .

"Can you just look like you're enjoying yourself? For the kids? Well, for Judith and Lily?"

She let out a long, suffering sigh before smiling.

"That's it. You never know… you might enjoy it out here"

"We are not having sex in bush, Tarzan", She rolled her eyes as she stepped past him, while he chuckled again.

Daryl was already setting up one of the many tents when she went to join them, with Carl's help, while Sasha was sat with Judith and Lily, going over the rules with the girls.

"Okay, so what do we do?", Andrea groaned from beside her.

"I don't know", Michonne shook her head.

"You can get the fire started, if you really want somethan' to do?", Rick eyed them both.

"Fine, I've got a lighter here somewhere", Andrea started tapping her many pockets.

"You don't need that, just go around and collect a few twigs and sticks, I'll show you how to do it the good ol' fashion way", He grinned, which earned him two scowls from the women.

"I told you no good would come from marrying a country boy", Andrea muttered loud enough for Rick to hear.

"Feel free to get lost Andrea", He called to her as they began their search.

Michonne inwardly groaned when she realised she would have to listen to the two of them bicker all night. The women walked through the trees, randomly grabbing sticks, not particularly sure what type where needed to make a fire.

"I hate you for this"

"I hate me for this too", Michonne sighed as she grabbed another stick from the ground.

"Why do we even-"

Both women stopped dead in their tracks when they heard movement coming from nearby.

"What was that?", Michonne hissed, squinting.

"It came from over there-"

Both women let out a blood curdling scream when they saw a small animal with dark fur scurry through the trees, dropping the twigs and sticks they had collected.

"Michonne don't leave me!", Andrea cried, running behind her, "It was a bear wasn't it?!"

"I don't know! Just run!", Michonne yelled back, looking around panicked, realising they were going in the wrong direction. She was already more scared than she'd like to admit, but when she felt something on her back, she screamed again, her hands flailing.

"It's me!", Andrea called, but Michonne tripped on a tree branch, dragging the other woman with her to the ground with a thud.

"Why did you grab me?!", Michonne panted as she pushed Andrea off her.

"I was scared!", Andrea explained.

Both breathed heavily into the air as they laid not their backs, until they heard a hissing sound uncomfortably close to their heads.

Michonne slowly looked at Andrea, whispering, "Did you hear that?"

Andrea looked as she was on the verge of tears, "I did"

They both saw the leaves near their heads move, and they were on their feet in the blink of an eye, running back in the direction they came.

"This is like the fucking Blair witch project!", Andrea sobbed as she ran beside Michonne.

"Stop it!", Michonne barked at her, though she felt like she wanted to cry too, as fear had well and truly taken over.

"Hey! Where the hell were you?!"

Michonne had never been so glad to hear Rick's voice. Everyone was stood, looking at them as they ran back to the camp site.

"Why is she crying?", Rick's eyes darted back and forth as he looked at them, "Why are you already dirty?!"

"There is something in those woods!", Michonne pointed at the trees, "It chased us!"

"What… like a wild pig or somethan '?" Daryl asked, his eyes amused.

"More like a small bear!", Andrea spat, wiping her tears away with the back of her hand.

"And a snake! It was by our heads!", Michonne knew they looked crazed, but she was still very frightened.

Rick looked as if he was about to implode from holding in his laughter, "You've been out the car for about eight minutes and you already got chased by a wild pig...and seen a snake?"

Michonne sent him a warning glance.

Daryl snickered, turning around and heading back to the tents. Sasha bit her lips as she tried not to laugh at the two of them, but she was failing at hiding her own amusement.

"You know what, why don't you two just take a seat…", Rick's shoulders bounced as he let out a silent laugh, "And stay where I can see you please"

Michonne straightened, holding her head up high as she walked past him, Andrea following behind her. Rick was right, they hadn't been out the car long, and she was already hating it all.

…

"Mama, look, that's a centipede"

Michonne's lips were pressed into a thin line as she looked at the insect her daughter held, "That's nice sweetie"

"Do you want to hold-"

"No I don't, but you are doing such a great job with this. Mama's so proud of you", she insisted, trying her best not to smack the insect out of her daughter's hands.

"Let's find something else", Judith dropped the insect, and turned around, causing Michonne to jump out the way, in case it landed on her boots.

"Judy, how about we-"

"Look aunt Mimi, look that this spider", Lily appeared beside her, holding a large black spider in her hands.

Michonne's knees almost buckled, "You know who loves spiders Lily? Your uncle Rick, he absolutely loves them, why don't you show it to him?"

"He told me you love them?", Lily tilted her head up at her.

Michonne turned, her eyes scanning for Rick. He was stood by the tent, looking at her with an evil grin.

She snarled at him, before turning back to the little girl's.

"Let's find a snake!", Judith insisted.

"How about we stick to insects? Mama already saw a snake and he said he was tired and he didn't want to be bothered today…"

Judith frowned, "Snakes don't talk?"

"Oh look! Let's see what we can find on this tree!", Michonne nodded excitedly urging them both to forget Judith's idea.

"Look! It's a squirrel!", Lily exclaimed.

"It is! Where are that trail mix your daddy brought Lily?"

"Right here", Sasha called out from beside the tents, throwing the bag over to Michonne.

"Let's see if we can get it to come over", Michonne felt braver when it came to small animals, and she did think the squirrel looked cute.

She filled both the girls hands with a little trail mix, as well as her own and they all crouched down, arms extended, as they waited for the squirrel to pick up the scent. The creature slowly made its way down the tree, cautiously coming over to them.

"It's coming", Judith whispered excitedly.

"It is!", Michonne whispered back, smiling with joy when the tiny paws took some of the mix from Lily's hands first, shoving them in its mouth.

Another, smaller squirrel came running down the tree, and followed the others lead, picking at the trail mix.

"Let me get a picture", Sasha grinned, taking out her phone.

Michonne finally felt calm, "You see girls? This is the part of nature that I don't mind-"

The sentence had barely left her mouth, when one of the squirrels ran up her arm, making Michonne scream and jump up in the air, arms flailing once again. The squirrel quickly crawled down the length of her and back to the tree, while Michonne still shook her head and jumped up and down.

"It's gone!", Sasha tried to calm her through her laughter, holding her arms.

"It attacked me!", Michonne pleaded, looking back at the tree with angry eyes.

"Girl, it did not!"

Michonne was about to argue her point, when she heard wheezing from behind her. There was only one thing she associated with the sound, which was Rick. Whenever he found something incredibly funny, he would laugh to the point where he wheezed, and sure enough when she looked over, he was doubled over, one hand on his knee and the other on his abdomen, tears in his eyes.

Usually, Michonne would have gone over there and whacked him, but seeing him laugh like that was infectious to her, so she couldn't help but chuckle too, though she was still mad at the squirrel.

"What happened?", Carl asked as he approached his father, looking at everyone curiously.

"Your mother… your mother's gonna give me a six pack by the time we leave here", Rick tried to straighten up, but he seemed to keep replaying the incident in his mind, as he doubled over again, "She's over there… wrestling with the squirrels"

Carl bit his bottom lip, "Are you okay mom?"

"I'm fine. Promise", She smiled, still hitting Rick in the arm as she strolled past him.

"We need to get his last tent set up", Rick sighed as he finally gathered himself, wiping a stray tear from his cheek, "Maybe you can help with that… leave the wildlife alone for a while"

"Very funny", She rolled her eyes at him.

"Come on mom, we can do this one together", Carl offered.

"Alright, let's do it"

…

"You sure you're not hungry?"

Michonne looked at the fish on the plate Sasha held out in front of her and tried not to visibly gag, "Oh no, I'm perfectly fine, thank you"

"Alright", Sasha took the plate away from her and Michonne could breathe through her nose again.

"You need to eat somethan'...", Rick suggested quietly, "I can take you up to my mom's… let her fix you somethan' for dinner"

She shook her head, "It's fine. I'll have a bread roll or something… just not anything...so… pungent"

He nodded, taking a sip of his beer.

Her eyes sailed across the camp; Judith and Lily were sat with Daryl, toasting marshmallows on sticks while Carl and Andrea watched, and Sasha was going around offering them a plate of food. She and Rick sat in their camp chairs watching them all by the tents.

"I think it might be another boy"

Michonne's eyes darted to Rick, "What makes you say that?"

He shrugged, looking at the fire that he had to start, "I just have a feeling…"

She slowly nodded, "You might be right"

"How are you feeling about it all? Tell me… everythan'..."

Her breath almost hitched in her throat, "...I don't think I'm ready to"

He looked at her, his eyes flashing from the flames, "You'll tell me when you are?"

"I will…"

He nodded, "Alright"

She looked back towards the others. It was a conversation they would have, she planned to have it with him soon, but in that very moment, she didn't want to discuss all her fears and hang ups.

"We should do that task that Aaron suggested"

Rick groaned, "Let me get a little drunk first"

"No. Let's do the secret one first. Tell me your biggest secret", She insisted, turning her chair to face him, "Go"

"What secret? You know everythan'-"

"No, I know I don't, because your brother always tells me something new about you. So tell me your biggest secret"

He furrowed his brow at her, "I don't have any secrets"

"Fine, then tell me…. Something embarrassing or scary that happened to you that you haven't told anyone else. Not a secret, just something you haven't spoken about", crossed her legs and her arms.

He eyed her, "You go first"

She sighed, "Fine… I have no problem with that… Um… Oh"

"What?"

She shook her head, "I don't think I should tell you this"

"Tell me", He squinted at her, his beer hovering by his lips.

She hesitated, "Okay but you can't get mad, or upset, because-"

"I can't promise that. Go on"

She groaned, covering her eyes with her hand, "After we divorced… and after I found out you were dating… I burnt my wedding dress"

His beer slowly lowered as he tilted his head at her, "You burnt your wedding dress?"

She gave a little nod, "Yeah… I set fire to it in the back yard…"

She didn't expect him to look as upset as he did, "Why would you… I loved you in that dress"

"I was upset. And angry. So I… did it".

He exhaled slowly, his gaze dropped to the floor, "I thought you had it stored away of somethan'..."

"Don't get upset please… I was just...and you were… and it doesn't really matter now, does it?"

He scoffed, "Glad you can look at it that way"

"Rick", She said in a stern tone, "Please. Can we carry on?"

"Alright, fine", He sniffed, his jaw clenched as he sat forward. His attitude had changed and she was almost fearful of what he'd admit to her, "Terry wasn't the only guy I scared off"

Her head reeled back, "What?"

"He wasn't the only one. In fact… I scared off quite a few guys"

"How?", She leaned forward in her seat.

"If ever I heard someone was interested, I'd pay them a visit, made sure they weren't when I left", He shrugged.

She squinted at him, "You did not-"

"You don't think it was strange that in the years we were divorced, not one man in town approached you? And the one that did wasn't even from around here?", He tilted his head at her.

She sat back, stunned, "You psychopath"

"Call it what you will but… it worked didn't it?", He raised his eyebrow at her.

"So you were out dating whoever you pleased-"

"I was just passing the time"

"You dated half the town!", She breathed at him through gritted teeth.

"None of them meant anythan', I told you before they were distractions-"

"So you were allowed distractions and I wasn't?"

He narrowed his eyes at her, "Why are you so mad about it now? You saw someone you liked out there?"

She rolled her eyes, "What does it matter? I went running back to you, didn't I?"

It was his time to sit forward, "Who was it? I wanna know-"

"No."

"Do I know him?"

"Rick. It doesn't matter. Look at us. We're sitting in the middle of the damn woods together, I'm pregnant and we're getting married again. Drop it"

"You're pregnant?!"

Rick and Michonne turned to the sound of Andrea's voice, and she was stood only a few feet away, with her jaw hanging, holding a plate of food and a beer in her hands.

"You're pregnant?!", Sasha's eyes were wide as she stepped into sight.

"No way?", Daryl's brow was low, though he was smiling too.

Michonne's mouth opened and closed a few times, while Rick sighed, running his hand over his face.

"Yeah…", She finally confirmed, all eyes locked on her.

"Oh my god!", the women squealed, running over to her, and quickly encasing her with their arms.

"I thought it was weird that you didn't eat the fish! You love fish!", Sasha huffed as she rubbed her shoulder.

"And you've been such a pain! It all makes sense", Andrea shook her head as her eyes glistened, "I'm gonna be an aunt again!"

"Me too!"

The wrapped their arms around her again, and Michonne basked in her friend's affections.

"You ol' dog", Daryl sniggered as he slapped Rick on the back, "Why didn't you tell me?"

"It's early days still", Rick explained, tearing his eyes from Michonne.

"I understand…", Daryl nodded, "...It makes sense why she's been fighting with everythan'-"

"Doesn't explain Andrea though".

"Nothing can explain Andrea"

…

Judith frowned at her mother, her little blue eyes trailing all over her face, "So you're having a baby?"

"We are", Michonne nodded as she sat cross legged in the children's tent.

Lily looked at Michonne's stomach, "Where is it?"

"It's really tiny right now, but it'll get bigger"

Judith was still frowning, "Will we get to bring this one home this time?"

She inhaled slowly, "We hope so… but we have to wait and see"

"Is it a girl?", Lily probed.

"We don't know yet but when we find out, I'll tell you two first, okay?"

They nodded in unison, before Judith leaned forward on all fours and yelled, "Hi baby! I'm your big sister, Judith!"

"God", Rick muttered from outside the tent, "She's gonna start shouting again"

"Can I talk to it?", Lily requested.

Michonne nodded, "Go ahead sweetie"

Lily mimicked Judith's position, "Hi baby, I'm Lily...and we're cousins…"

"That was perfect girls", Michonne kissed Lily on the forehead, then did the same with Judith, "Now it's time for bed, so let's get in your sleeping bags…"

She watched them both crawl in there sleeping areas, and zipped them up.

"Night aunt Mimi"

"Night mama"

"Night my little love bugs".


	31. Chapter 31

**Chapter 31:**

 _'I don't think you can get any better'_

"Remember, sleep across the opening, so you that way the girls can't slip by you and no one can sneak in", Rick instructed as his son stood outside Judith and Lily's tent.

Carl squinted at his father, "What if someone tries to kidnap me?"

"I doubt it", Rick shook his head.

"Thanks"

"I'll always want to kidnap you", Michonne smiled as she hugged him, "My little Carli"

"Oh my god, mom", Carl groaned, "Not in public"

She ignored him, "Go on, in you get"

Rick took a swig of his beer as he watched his son climb in the tent, "Night son"

"How many of those have you had?", Michonne frowned at him.

He shrugged, looking at the almost empty bottle, "I don't like to count"

"Well come on, we're doing the other activities Aaron suggested", She turned and made her way to their own tent.

He growled as he followed her, "I don't want to"

"Come on"

She crawled in the tent and he followed after, ripping his boots off as soon as he was seated. She took off her jacket and sat cross legged in front of him, while he had one leg bent on front of him and the other raised so he could rest his elbow on it.

"Alright, five minutes of staring into each other's eyes"

He pulled a face at her, "I'm getting to the stage where I'm seeing two of everythan' so somethan' else please"

"Come on, we're doing it", She urged.

"It's not gonna get the desired effect that you think it will"

"Look at me Rick"

He sighed, focusing in on her eyes. She stared back at him, and for a moment, that's all it was, just the two of them staring at each other, but something changed. He was getting lost in her big, brown eyes, thinking about how much she meant to him, how much he would do for her, what he was willing to do for her. His life revolved around the woman that we sat in front of him and it was an overwhelming reminder, but a beautiful one all the same.

But then he remembered what she had told him about her wedding dress, and sadness washed over him.

"What's wrong?", She frowned.

He broke the eye contact, "Your dress…"

"Rick-"

"I was hoping you'd wear it again", He confessed.

Her mouth snapped shut, and she shook her head, looking away from him, "I wouldn't have wanted to wear it again"

"Why?"

"Because… I have a lot of happy memories from our first marriage, but a lot of sad ones too…"

He wished she had a way of warning him when she was going to drop a bombshell like that.

"I don't regret it or anything… I would probably do a lot of it again… but… when things got really bad between us… and then we divorced… then I found out you were dating, I didn't think we'd get back together then… I thought it was the end... that's why I burnt it"

He slowly nodded, his gaze on something else in the tent.

"Back then I was so afraid of disappointing you Rick. I just wanted to make you happy and that's what drove me to lie when I did, and for as long as I did, because I didn't know how to talk to you… but now, I feel like we can talk to each other about anything… and even though we haven't gone into detail about the baby, we will do…but I still feel closer to you now than I did back then"

He exhaled, looking at her, "You didn't feel close to me back then?"

She seemed to think about it, "I did… but it wasn't the same… My feelings towards you haven't changed, if that's what you're wondering?"

He smirked, "I don't know what I'm wondering right now"

She took his hand between hers, "I still love you just as much as I did then, if not, then more. I feel like we're getting better… and isn't that what we want? To get better for each other?"

He ran his tongue around a tooth as he nodded, "Yeah… I guess it is"

She brought his hand up to cup her face, and he stroked her cheek bone with his thumb, "It is".

His tone was lower, "I don't think you can get any better"

"I can. Aaron's going to help with that"

He rolled his eyes, "Oh I bet he will. As long as we keep lining his pockets, he'll be more than happy to help"

She narrowed her eyes at him, "Get out of my tent"

"Make me", He bit his lip as watched her.

"You think I won't?"

"I think we should take advantage of where we are", He sniggered, leaning forward as he held her hip, burying his face in her neck.

"What did I tell you earlier?"

"Not in a bush", He bit and kissed at her skin, all the way up to her ear, where he rasped, "But I'd love to fuck you up against a tree…"

He said the key words, as her head rolled back, exposing her neck to him. His other hand gripped her thigh, urging her to straddle him as his length throbbed in his jeans.

"Dad!"

Rick sighed, dropping his head against her shoulder, "Yes?!"

"...I need to the bathroom…", Carl hissed from outside the tent.

His head snapped up, "Yeah? What's the problem?"

"...It's dark"

"Don't go too far just-"

"Go with him", Michonne instructed, moving away from him.

Rick could have growled but he chose to huff instead, lazily pushing himself up off the floor of the tent, muttering to himself, "I used to come out here when it was pitch black when I was his age-"

"Yeah yeah, just go with him".

…

"Didn't Grandpa chase you around the farm once?"

Rick narrowed his eyes at his son, "How'd you know about that?"

"Uncle Jeffrey"

"He told me that one too", Daryl chirped from the other side of Carl. The three of them sat with their fishing rods perched beside them, looking out at the small lake.

"He probably didn't tell it right", Rick shook his head, "I was probably about…sixteen?... Snuck out with Shane to go to a party… came home around three in the morning, and I climbed up the tree that was by my bedroom window. So I had my foot on the window ledge and the light came on, both your grandmother and your grandfather were in my bedroom, just staring at me, while I was still on this tree, frozen like a damn cat"

Daryl and Carl laughed at him as they listened.

"Your grandfather took one step forward and I crawled back on to the tree, cause I knew once he caught me, he would have tanned me, so I stayed on the tree, and he closed the window. Locked it too. So I thought I'd just wait up there until he calmed down… well, that was my mistake. He pulled up a chair and sat at the bottom of the tree, waiting for me"

"For how long?", Carl questioned.

"Oh god, maybe 2 hours? The sun came up and when I checked on him, it looked like he was asleep, so I climbed down... just as my foot hit the ground, he grabbed my shirt and I ran, and he chased me around the house, the farm, over the hills, for at least twenty minutes straight. The only reason he caught me was because I got a damn cramp in my side and had to stop running"

Daryl and Carl held their stomachs as they chuckled at him, and even Rick had to laugh at the memory.

"You sound like you were trouble as a kid dad", Carl shook his head at him.

"I was a pain. So was your mother, so don't let her tell you any different"

"No way", Carl shook his head.

"Yep. Your grandfather probably won't tell you, but your grandmother told me everythan' I needed to know"

"Like what?"

Rick thought about a story to tell his son, taking a sip of his beer, "Alright, I got one... Her and her brother, they've always had their problems, and they used to fight a lot, but never in front of your grandparents because they would have caught a beating for it, so they would fight in secret… so one day your grandmother went home, and your mother's brother had a black eye that was swollen shut"

Carl's mouth fell open.

"He blamed a kid at school, but when your grandmother called the school, they said he didn't have any fights or anythan' at school, he left in good health, so he fessed up and said it was your mother. Your grandmother searched high and low for her, couldn't find her anywhere and it was starting to get late, so your grandfather gets home, they start to panic, start calling everyone, asking if they've seen her… eventually call the police… they start looking, and your grandmothers at the end of her tether, worried sick, then she hears a sneeze…"

Daryl and Carl both squinted at him.

"Your mother was hiding under the sink, in the cabinet, the whole damn time, for about six or seven hours your grandmother said"

"Why didn't she come out?", Daryl's face was pinched with confusion.

"Apparently she said she was gonna come out, but in the midst of talking to the police, they asked her for a picture of Michonne, and your grandmother also discovered that all her framed pictures had no glass in them… Michonne and her brother had broken them all when they fought, so they just put the frames back up, hoping no one would notice"

"She didn't wanna catch an ass whooping on top of another ass whooping", Daryl snickered.

"Exactly!", Rick chuckled.

Carl chortled with them, "I can't imagine mom doing anything bad"

"But you can imagine me?", Rick frowned at him.

"Of course. You're the bad cop", Carl shrugged.

"Who's the bad cop out of me and your aunt?", Daryl raised an eyebrow at the teen.

"Aunt Sasha", Carl answered easily.

"Oh hush boy", Daryl waved a dismissive hand at him, "Who asked you?"

Rick and Carl nudged each other as they laughed.

"Come on Uncle Daryl, I know you have some stories too", the teen urged.

"Nah, you got about three more years before I can tell you what I got up to as a kid"

Carl looked at Rick suspiciously.

"You think I got up to no good", Rick smirked as he took a sip of his beer.

"Rick!"

Michonne's voice was shrill from behind them, and Rick looked over his shoulder to see her, "What's wrong?!"

"There's a spider in the tent!"

He blinked at her, "And?!"

"And! You better come and kill it!"

"Sasha's good with spiders!", Daryl suggested.

"She said it's too big for her!"

"Oh damn", Daryl muttered.

"I don't like spiders, Michonne!", Rick called to her.

"I don't care, Rick!", She called back with a shrug.

"I'll go get it", Carl shrugged, standing up, "How bad can it be?"

Rick groaned as he put down his beer, knowing if he had allowed his son to go and deal with the spider, Michonne would never let him live it down.

He wished one of them possessed the strength to deal with arachnids. He was more than happy to deal with anything else, but when it comes to the eight legged insects, he was at a loss. Michonne was exactly the same, so they were both useless. They made their way back to the camp, where Judith and Lily were playing with Andrea, while Sasha and Rick's mother sat talking nearby.

Rick walked over to their tent and peaked in, with Daryl and Carl on either side of him, "Where is it?"

"There he go, right there", Daryl pointed to the corner of the tent.

"Oh boy", Carl sighed, shaking his head.

Rick looked at it for only a second, "It can keep the tent"

"Our stuff is in there", Michonne informed from behind him.

"We don't need any of that-"

"Rick!"

"Fine!", He huffed, dragging his hand over his face, "We got anythan' big enough to trap it in?"

"Like a cage?", Daryl snickered, "You put a tub on that and it'll knock it off"

"Where did it even come from? I haven't seen something so big", Carl squinted at it as it leaned forward.

"Don't get too close Carl 'cause if it jumps on you, then you have to get that off by yourself", Rick warned.

Carl's head reeled back and Daryl laughed at the two of them.

"You chicken", Michonne scowled at Rick.

"You wanna go in there and get it?", Rick tilted his head at her, "I already told you, we don't need any of that"

"Just find something to throw on it-"

" _What_ Michonne? What can we find to put on that? The cooler?"

"Do you think it bites?", Carl asked.

"Carl, don't go near it, let your father get it", Michonne ordered.

Rick stared at her scornfully for a moment, then turned his attention back to the tent, "Alright let's just pull our stuff out, then shake the tent out over there by the trees"

She smiled at him as she tapped his shoulder, "Thank you"

"Yeah yeah".

…

"Daddy this is no fun… Can you carry me?"

Rick didn't waste any time crouching in front of his daughter, holding her as she jumped on his back, "The whole point of this is that you walk sweetie"

"Can we go home now? I miss the TV", She pouted, resting her head on his.

He chuckled, "We will do, alright? And I'm sure the TV misses you too"

"Seriously dad, can we go home now? This was fun and all but… I'm tired now", Carl complained from behind them, dragging his feet as he carried Lily.

"This is meant to be a fun little nature walk, just the four of us-"

"Why didn't mama come?", Judith piped in his ear.

"Your mama wasn't feeling too good", He lied, knowing Michonne quite simply refused, "But we can tell her all about it when we get back"

"Did you and uncle Jeffrey used to play out here?", Carl questioned.

"We did. When we weren't helping out on the farm, we'd come down here for hours… your grandmother used to have to drag us home by our ears"

"No offence dad… but what could you even do here?"

Rick side eyed him, "We'd make up games to play. Or just chase each other around, climb the trees… back then we didn't have phones to play on, or a TV to stick too-"

"Really?!", Judith was amazed, staring at her father's head.

He sighed, looking through the trees, "I need to bring you three down here more often"

"I like it here", Lily's eyes roamed over Carl's shoulders.

"You're your father's child Lily", Rick smiled at her, "I'll make sure we do thangs like this more often"

Carl groaned, and to Rick's surprise, so did Judith, but with less disdain than her brother. He was about to give them a speech when he saw what he was looking for.

"Here it is", He grinned.

"What?", Carl frowned, his eyes darting all over the place.

"This tree", Rick tipped his head in the direction, "We used to climb it when we were kids"

"Can we?", Lily asked excitedly.

"Go right ahead", Rick agreed, letting Judith down from his back.

Both girls skipped other to the large tree, which was fairly easy to climb, due to its thick roots. Rick watched them with an adoring smile, feeling incredibly nostalgic.

"I brought you here when you were young"

Carl raised an eyebrow at him, "When?"

Rick squinted as he tried to remember, "You were… four years old If remember correctly"

"With mom?"

"No", Rick smirked, "She stayed up at the house with your grandmother, your grandfather came down with us"

Carl shifted his stance, "I don't remember?"

"I wouldn't expect you to… and I hope it isn't because you fell off that branch right there", He pointed at the tree, "Don't tell your mother, she still doesn't know"

His son shook his head, obviously disappointed.

"It's actually kind of funny", He sniggered, "One minute you were up there and the next you were on the floor like a starfish"

"Thanks dad", The teen said dryly.

"No problem", Rick wrapped his arm around his shoulders and gave him a squeeze, "You turned out perfectly fine"

Carl rolled his eyes as he smiled, "Yeah…but um… I actually wanted to talk to you… about Lori"

Rick's own smile fell and he stepped back to look at his son.

"I want to talk to her"

His heart began to thump harder in his chest, "Really?"

"Yeah… I've been thinking about it and… I don't want her doing all of this-"

"Don't feel like you have to do this for our sake Carl", Rick's eyebrows shot up, as he lowered his voice, "You don't have to do anythan' you don't-"

"I know. But I do want to talk to her", Carl insisted, his chest rising, "But if you and mom don't think it's a good idea, then I get it-"

"It's not that we don't think it's a good idea, it's just Lori… Lori doesn't completely think thangs through. This situation right now is proof of that. She hasn't taken the time to sit down and understand why you don't want a relationship with her, so she's blaming everyone else for that"

"I figured", Carl sighed, "But that's why I want to talk to her…"

The conversation made Rick's chest tight, and he had never felt so powerless, but he kept his expression neutral, "Alright. Fine. We'll set that up"

Carl nodded, but only for a moment, "I don't want mom to know"

His eyes almost bulged, "Now that is somethan' that definitely won't happen-"

"I don't want her to worry-"

"She needs to know Carl-"

"Dad, she's pregnant", Carl's eyes widened as he stressed his point, "I don't want her to stress or worry or get herself worked up about it… If she does and then something happens to the baby then I'll never forgive myself for doing that to her"

Rick inhaled slowly, feeling sick all of a sudden. His son's argument wasn't unfounded, and seeing him worried about his mother tugged at Rick's heart strings. He exhaled sharply, "I'll think about it alright? But nothing happens until I decide on it, deal?"

Carl nodded again, "Agreed"

He smacked his hand on his son's back, "Come on, let's get them down before history repeats itself".


	32. Chapter 32

**Chapter 32:**

 _'That's not the point_ '

Michonne threw herself down on her bed, immediately melting into the comforter, "I'm never leaving you again"

"Wish you talked to me like that"

She opened one eye to see Rick closing the bedroom door, a towel wrapped around his waist and his hair still wet from his shower, "Why don't you ever dry your hair when you're in the bathroom?"

"I did, it's just damp"

"Your shoulders are wet-"

"Do it for me then", He pulled the towel from his lower half and handed it to her.

She rolled her eyes as she pushed herself up, kneeling on the bed, "Come on"

She dropped the towel over him when he sat in front of her, and she began massaging his head rhythmically.

"Michonne?"

She hummed a response.

"Where's the cheque your father gave us?"

Her movements nearly faltered, "I cashed it"

He grabbed hold of her wrist with one hand and pulled the towel off himself with the other. He looked back at her with a raised eyebrow.

"I haven't spent any of it yet, if that's what you're worried about", She shrugged, "I split it four ways, ten in each of the kids savings account, fifteen in our account and five for spending money when we go on the cruise".

"Five thousand dollars?! We are not spending five thousand dollars in five days?! That's a thousand a day!", He screeched as he turned to face her.

"I didn't say we had to spend the whole five thousand! We can split it, so half is spending and half is just in case-"

"That's still five hundred dollars a day!", He stood up and Michonne hated how quickly her eyes dropped to his member, "We can put a thousand down for spending and that's it"

She raised her eyebrows at him, "Rick, this is a luxury cruise, it won't be cheap-"

"It doesn't mean we spend what we just got! Your father already forked out way too much for this anyway!"

She stared at him for a moment, before biting out, "Two thousand five hundred"

"A thousand", He forced sternly.

"Two thousand-"

"A thousand. And that's final, Michonne"

Her head reeled back as she raised an eyebrow at him, "Is that so?"

"It is", He cocked his head at her, causing his still damp hair to fall around his face.

She didn't break eye contact with him as she brought her legs in front of her from her kneeled position. She stood up, crossed her arms and placed herself right in front of him, "I think you need to remember something Grimes-"

"What's that?"

"That if we don't compromise-"

"Yeah?", He stepped closer to her, his chest against hers.

"Then I won't be happy", She hated that she could feel his semi erect penis near her crotch, "And if I'm not happy, then you won't be either"

His eyes flashed with amusement, though he tried to stay stone faced, "You really think you can take me on, don't you?"

She smirked, "Make a move Grimes. _Draw_ "

He ran his tongue over his teeth as he cocked his head at her, "I already did"

She tried to stay focused but he was well and truly hard and temptingly close to her heat, "Get that thing away from me-"

"That _thang_ is all yours", He grinned, his hand sliding over her hip and grabbing a handful of her ass, "Just like all of this is mine"

"You are scandalous", She breathed, almost choking on air when his fingers crept in her shorts and between her cheeks, "Hey! What did I tell you about that?"

"I can't remember…", His lips found her neck, "...Tell me again?"

She would have told him, but her eyes rolled shut when his other hand pulled her towards him, his tongue tickling her sweet spot. His words always made her melt quicker than a popsicle in the sun and she couldn't resist him anymore than he could her.

"Daddy! You said you'd come read to me!"

Rick growled quietly into her skin.

"He's coming sweetie!", Michonne called out to Judith.

He released her, "Don't go to sleep"

"I can't promise that", She warned, "I'm tired"

He pouted as he grabbed his boxers from the dresser, muttering, "Every time… we're so close-"

"Go!".

…

"Well hello there, Mrs Parker"

Michonne plastered a fake smile on her face as she watched Negan take a seat in front of her. The office that accompanied him shoved him down in the seat, which earned him a scowl from Negan.

The court room was busy as everyone prepared to take their seats. Michonne didn't need to be there, but she still followed along with Andrea as Milton was unable to attend. Her friend was well prepared, and she was the most confident when it came to the courtroom.

Sherry and Amber both blew kisses at Negan when he turned and looked back at them, and Michonne looked away uncomfortably. Daryl stood not far from the man, arms crossed and eyes locked on him. Rick walked up to him, and the two seemed to communicate something with their eyes, before Rick joined him, standing against the wall.

Michonne knew Rick didn't have to be there either but he desperately wanted Negan sent down, so he wasn't going to miss it. His eyes found hers, and while she was tempted to roll them at him, something else happened. Seeing him in his dark blue uniform, his gun on his belt, arms folded across his chest and stern expression, made her chest rise and fall quicker. She was incredibly turned on and she couldn't think of a more inappropriate time.

It was as if he read her mind, as he raised an eyebrow at her, his gaze working down to her crossed legs and slowly back up to her face. She decided in that moment, she no longer cared where they were.

"Andrea", She called quietly as she stood up and leaned on the wooden barrier between them, "Watch my purse, I'm going to the bathroom"

"Alright, but hurry back", Her friend took her bag and placed it on the floor in front of her.

Michonne didn't look back at Rick, as she didn't want to rouse any suspicion, so she walked out of the courtroom with her head high and unfazed.

She knew exactly where she was heading, and only slowed to make sure Rick knew too. When she heard the large door to the room shut behind her, she smiled to herself.

The restrooms were down a quiet hallway, and Michonne listened outside the women's door first, before moving on to the men's when she heard the hand dryer. When she was certain she heard no movement, she pushed open the door and swiftly stepped in.

To her luck, it was empty, and she headed to the stall on the very end, yanking up her skirt and pulling off her dampened thong once she was inside. The restroom door opened shortly after, and she bravely stuck her head out the stall, growing even more excited when she saw Rick already undoing his belt as he stalked towards her.

As soon as the stall door shut, her skirt hem was back around her waist and she kissed him hurriedly as he freed himself. She couldn't think of a time when she ached for him in such a way, but she was ready to climb him with urgency.

He grabbed her by her inner thigh and pushed her up against the wall. Her arms laced around his neck, and she jumped so he could catch her by her other leg. His poked his tip at her folds until he found her entrance, and a primal moan left her when he impaled her. Their breaths filled each other's mouths as he wasted no time pumping in and out of her, her passion coating his shaft. They didn't have the freedom to make noise but it only added to the elation she felt.

He looked down between them when he picked up the pace, slamming into her with purpose. She clung to him, her mind teetering on the brink of sanity. He looked back up at her and she took his bottom lip between her teeth as the smallest cries left her, her skirt rolling up even higher.

"You like that?", He rasped with a questioning tone.

"Yeah", She moaned back, her forehead brushing against his.

"You're a bad girl…", He breathed between gritted teeth as his pace slowed but he thrust harder.

Her lust filled gaze dropped between them, and she watched him disappear inside of her.

"Look at me", He demanded in a way that made her core to tingle, and her eyes rolled back up to meet his.

She knew what he wanted to hear, and she was more than happy to comply, "Yes, Sheriff"

His lips crashed into hers as he quickened the pace again, pounding into her like jackhammer. She cried into the kiss as her orgasm hit her, causing her eyes to snap shut and her back to arch. The feeling was euphoric, sending shivers down her spine and a fluttering between her legs.

She wished she had the opportunity to come down from her high with ease, but Rick was still moving inside her with determination.

Her tongue found his earlobe, and she helped him find his own release, "That's it sheriff… just like that"

His grip on her thighs tightened, holding them further apart so he could plunge deeper.

Michonne almost lost her mind, "Oh god, yes Daddy!"

She didn't know where the term came from, since she preferred to call him 'Sheriff' at such times, but it seemed to do the trick, as a throaty growl left him, his shaft jerked within her, and his movements slowed. She began to lazily kiss along his jaw, smoothing back the locks that has fallen, when the restroom door creaked open and footsteps followed.

They both froze as they listened to the person walk over to the urinals. Michonne dropped her head back tiredly, dying for Rick to withdraw himself, as she was becoming more sensitive to his length. Rick pecked kisses up her neck quietly as they listened to the man flush the urinal and walk over to the sinks. She was secretly glad that no one had come in while they were in the midst of their tryst, though they would have continued regardless.

The man stood around for a while before finally leaving the restrooms, and Michonne was free from his hold. Neither said anything as they fixed their clothing to a more presentable state. She attempted to slip her underwear back on, holding them up in front of her as she prepared to step into them, when Rick took them from her, shoving them in his pants pocket.

"You have no shame", She tutted as she opened the stall door.

"This wasn't my idea though, was it?", He teased, his breath tickling her ear.

"Let's go Grimes".

…

"So he's waived the right to speedy trial"

Michonne rolled her eyes, "Rick won't be happy about that"

"The case against the asshole that shot him is going to start soon, that should keep him busy till then", Andrea informed as they pushed through the front doors of the courthouse.

"We definitely need to go to that", She sighed, taking out her phone.

"How y'all doing?", Daryl appeared beside them, squinting away from the sun.

"Hey Dixon, did Rick tell you about Saturday?", Michonne shielded her eyes with her hand.

"He did. Judith's birthday", Daryl nodded, "We wouldn't miss it"

"Great. It's nothing big, just a small little party at our house"

Daryl peaked over his shoulder, furrowing his brow, "Does Rick know that?"

She narrowed her eyes at him, "What did he tell you?"

Daryl shifted uncomfortably, "He said it's going to be at the diner…"

Michonne's shoulders fell, "What?"

"Well that's good right? Saves you having to clean up", Andrea nudged her.

"Everybody Alright?"

Rick approached them, looking rather content. Michonne would have been in a similar mood, had she not found out that he had changed their daughter's birthday plans. She crossed her arms over her chest and tilted her head at him when he was near enough.

"Come on Dixon, let's go look at something over there", Andrea promoted, raising her eyebrows at him.

"Sounds like a good idea", Daryl snickered following her lead, "You two play nice now"

"We will", Michonne insisted as she continued to glare at Rick.

Rick eyed her suspiciously, "What?"

"Judith's birthday?"

"What about it?"

"You told Dixon that it's going to be at the diner, when we agreed to have it at home-"

"I know", He held his hands up to her in surrender, "But, my sweet little angel loves the diner and she loves food, so I thought she'd enjoy somethan' there instead"

"Why didn't you say something?!"

"Calm down please", He pleaded, "I was meant to but it slipped my mind and I'm sorry. I know they have birthday parties there and they're gonna set it all up for her... she's gonna love it and plus, you won't have to worry about a thang-"

"That's not the point-"

"I know, the point is that I didn't tell you that I changed the plan and I'm sorry, okay?"

"Stop talking to me like I'm a moron!", She snapped, her fists balling up.

Rick raised an eyebrow at her, "I'm not talking to you like you're a moron, I'm trying to keep the conversation from turning in a direction that it doesn't need to go-"

"I thought we weren't doing things like this anymore?"

"I wasn't trying to-"

A security guard stepped into view behind Rick, "Mam, I'm gonna have to ask you to-"

"Hey!", Rick barked at him as he turned around, "You're not asking her a damn thang!"

The man squinted at him, "But Sheriff-"

"Go!"

The security guard looked confused, his brow furrowing, but he still backed towards the door, yanking it open and disappearing inside.

"Look", His tone was soft again, "I just thought it would be easier for the both of us. That's all, I didn't mean to not tell you"

She rolled her eyes at him, turning towards the parking lot, "Yeah yeah"

"Hey", He grabbed her wrist, "Don't do all that, I mean it"

"Alright! We'll just do it at the diner"

"Good. I don't want you getting so worked up either, you have to calm down", He rested his hand on her stomach over her shirt, "I promised you it would be alright"

She was tempted to smack his hand away but, she knew he was right, so instead she huffed, looking down at his hand, "Yeah, I know"

"Come on, I'll walk you to your car", He let go of her wrist and moved his hand to her lower back.

"Fine".

…

"So do we have separate rooms on the cruise?"

Michonne raised her eyebrows at her son, "You're sharing a suite with your sister"

Carl slowly nodded, loading the next question, "But doesn't that mean I have to stay in the room with her when she goes to bed?"

Michonne put her hand on her hip, turning away from the tomatoes she was cutting to face him, "What's the problem Carl?"

He sighed, straightening up, "It's just that, we're going to be on a cruise, and I don't mind sharing a suite with Judith or anything but… she's in bed by eight, so that means I'd have to be in the room by eight-"

"Your curfew will still be ten when we're on the ship, and Judith can sleep in our bed until then, okay?"

He grinned, "Thanks"

"That doesn't mean you're free to do stuff you wouldn't do in front of me and your father", She narrowed her eyes at him, "And we'll be in close proximity when Lauren's around"

He still nodded enthusiastically, "That's fine"

"Good"

The doorbell rang, and Michonne handed her son the knife to continue her task, while she went to answer it.

"Delivery for Mr Grimes?", the young man at the door informed, standing next to a pile of boxes.

Michonne eyed them all before signing for Rick's purchases, muttering to herself, "What is all this…"

"Christmas came early", The young man joked, "You want some help bringing them in?"

"Oh, if you don't mind", She smiled, bending over and taking the box nearest to her.

"No problem, mam"

They piled the boxes up in the hallway, and Michonne wondered all the while what it was she was moving around, but it soon dawned on her as she took the last box from the man.

"Well hey there! Aren't you a cute little thing", The man greeted Judith as she stood by the living room watching the exchange, "Your daughter?"

"Yes, she is", Michonne beamed proudly.

"Well it makes sense, beautiful mother, beautiful daughter", the man quipped, resting on the door frame.

Michonne giggled, flattered by the compliment, "Why thank you"

"Your father is a lucky man, ain't he?", He looked back at Judith.

"My daddy has a gun", Judith announced, and something about her tone told Michonne that the comment was well rehearsed.

Michonne and the man both froze, staring at Judith as her eyes darted back and forth at them.

"Well… on that note, I hope you both enjoy your evening", the man promptly pushed away from the door frame and gave Michonne a single nod.

"Thanks…", She responded weekly, closing the door behind him, and turning to face Judith with a questioning look, "Judy…"

"Yes mama?", She bounced on the spot.

"Did daddy tell you to say that?"

She stopped bouncing, her eyes roamed the space around her mother, "No…"

Michonne cursed Rick in her mind, "Alright sweetie, go back to what you were doing"

"What's all this?", Carl asked as he strolled towards her.

"I have a feeling these are for you know who", She tilted her head towards the living room, "For her, you know what this Saturday"

His eyes bulged, "What? He already got her a ton of gifts?"

"What? Where?", Michonne squinted at him.

"There in the guest room"

She looked towards the stairs.

"Is it bad that I'm slightly jealous?", Carl tilted his head at her.

"Don't be, your father used to spoil you like this too", She smirked.

"Why'd he stop?"

Her eyes darted towards the living room, "Then we had Judith"

"Nice", He deadpanned with an unimpressed expression.

"Don't worry", She nudged him, "I've got his card"

"Don't you always have his card?"

"Hush boy".


	33. Chapter 33

**Chapter 33:**

 _'Watch yourself... '_

"Robbery at Clarence's last night"

Rick's eyes rolled up to meet Leon's, "The jewellery store?"

"Yep. Whoever got in there knew what they were doing, cause the place looked fine. No broken glass, no prints, finger or foot, but they cleared out his new diamond collection. They took fifteen grand worth of stuff"

"Who else works there?", Rick sat back in his chair as he watched his friend and colleague at his office door.

"Clarence's wife and some young girl, but the girls been out of town on vacation with her family, so only the two of them been running the store for the last week", Leon explained, crossing his arms.

Rick thought it over, "Insurance claim?"

Leon shook his head, "They didn't even have insurance"

His eyes widened, "The jewellery store didn't have insurance?"

"Not against theft or robbery. Clarence said he never had an issue like this before so he didn't see the need... He does now, of course"

He sighed, sitting forward and resting his elbows on his desk, "Alright, call around, see if any of the other departments had anythan' like this in their towns. If the person did a clean job then this is probably a hobby"

"Michonne sporting anything new and shiny?", the younger man joked.

Rick sneered, "I think we all know she wouldn't have just taken the diamonds. Now go on"

"Got it", Leon tapped the door frame as he turned back to the hall.

"Hey! If you see Walsh, send him here".

Leon nodded, "Alright"

Rick grabbed his phone off the far end of his desk and began tapping on the screen, then put it to his ear.

"This is the diner, Helen speaking, how may I help?", The woman greeted.

"Hey Helen, it's Rick Grimes-"

"Oh hey, Sheriff! What can I do for you?"

"For Judith's birthday party this Saturday, I just wanted to check that Jack has everythan'-"

"I think he does? There's a mountain of boxes in his office"

"Alright good, and I also wanted to check that he remembers her special menu's…"

"Oh yes, I'm in change of those and I'll have them ready-"

"And they have to say-"

"Judith's diner, yep, I remembered"

"That's great, and lastly, her cake will be delivered on Friday, and one of her presents that I want her for open at the party"

"Alright, got it, so decorations, menus, cake and gift. I'll talk to Jack about it when he gets back"

"Thanks, just give me a call if there's a problem", Rick's eyes darted towards the door when he saw Shane appear, "And can you do me a favour, Helen? Just stress to Jack that I need this to be absolutely perfect-"

"We know! It's your sweet little angel's birthday and you won't settle for anythan' less. You gave me the speech already", The woman laughed on the other end of the line.

Rick smiled, thought he was tempted to stress the point once more, "Alright I'll leave you to it. Thanks again"

"No problem!"

He hung up and looked to Shane, "I needed to talk to you about this weekend"

"Oh yeah, I was gonna give Michonne a call about that", Shane informed as he stepped further into his office.

Rick didn't like hearing that he had planned to call Michonne, and he didn't like the fact that they even had each other's numbers, "There's no need for that. I was just gonna tell you that it's Judith's birthday on Saturday and we're doing somethan' for it in the day so you can drop Milly off at the diner around two and we'll take her home from there"

Shane nodded, his eyes sailing away from Rick, "That sounds good…"

Rick eyed him, taking note of his body language, "Problem?"

"Nah", Shane shook his head, "No, that's all fine, I'll be sure to do that".

He still narrowed his eyes at him, "Alright then".

Shane left his office, and Rick couldn't help but wonder what the other man was distracted by. He knew chances where it was something to do with Lori, and he hoped it wouldn't somehow negatively impact his family, though he knew to be prepared, as it always did somehow.

…

"Daddy!"

Judith skipped to her father at the front door, and Rick met her with open arms, "Hey there, my sweet little princess"

"Mama's mad", Judith informed when he picked her up.

Rick raised his eyebrows at her, "What's mama mad about?"

Judith gave a little shrug, "She's making a lot of noise"

Rick opened his mouth to say something else, when he heard a door slam and something else bang on the counter in the kitchen. Carl froze in the middle of the staircase, having heard the racket, he decided to around and walk back upstairs.

Rick put Judith back down on the floor, "You go watch somethan' sweetie"

She nodded, skipping into the living room, while Rick slowly inhaled, stepping cautiously towards the kitchen.

Michonne was cutting onions with unnecessary force, muttering something incoherent when he walked into the room. He sighed, resting on the counter, ready to ask her what the problem was when she pointed, using the knife, at a few sheets of paper sitting on a brown envelope on the kitchen island. Rick furrowed his brow as he went over to it, his eyes darting all over the sheet.

He squinted as he read through the first one quickly, "A court date?"

"A judge is considering hearing her case", She began cutting again, "If she can prove that she wasn't mentally balanced when she signed away her rights to Carl then the next move is reinstating them"

Rick looked over his shoulder at her, feeling slightly nervous at the prospect. He exhaled tiredly, "What's our plan here?"

She appeared to smirk, "Our plan is to let her have her say. Let her build herself up as a mother who has suffered from other people's wrongdoings… and then we're going for to tear her down"

He turned to face her, "How are we doing that?"

"By showing them what kind of person she truly is and why she's even doing this all of a sudden", She dropped the onions into a pot of boiling broth, "I honestly don't even think she wants Carl. I think she's just trying to find a way to get closer to you-"

"Watch yourself with that", Rick warned as he watched her.

She ignored him, "Somewhere in her warped mind she thinks that getting Carl will somehow get you and that's her goal. To get back with you and then the three of you can just run off into the sunset together-"

He stepped over to her and nudged her out the way, "Why don't I take over from here-"

"Do you even care?!", She bit at him, her grip on the knife handle tightening.

"I do care", His eyes darted down to the potential weapon, and he slowly tugged it from her, "But I just don't want her to become a bigger problem for us-"

She wouldn't let go, "She's already a big problem for us!"

"She is", He insisted, still trying to get the blade, "But I told you before, I'm not arguing about her with you-"

"This isn't an argument!", She pulled her hand away, and stabbed the counter with the knife, leaving it standing in the marble.

Rick stared at her hand for a moment, sighing as he found her eyes with his. He was beginning to see why his son didn't want to tell his mother about his plan to talk to his birth mother, "Michonne, please."

Her angry expression softened only a fraction.

"I don't want her to become a problem between the two of us", He pried her hand from the knife and held it in his, "We have to deal with her together for Carl"

Her eyes soon glistened, her shoulders falling further as the hard exterior started to crumble, "I'm so scared Rick"

"You shouldn't be", He wrapped his arms around her, "I know it's hard for you... but no one's taking him from you. I told you I wouldn't let that happen"

"But what if-"

"No. There would be a cold day in hell before I let that happen. And even colder day before you let him go. You know that"

She finally relaxed, her hands resting on his sides, "I know"

He kissed the top of her head, "I need you to calm down. I know it's easier said than done but, we have someone else to take into consideration now"

She nodded slowly, as if her mind was travelling somewhere else.

"You gonna talk to me about that now?", He whispered, his lips by her cheek, "You know you can, right?"

"I know", She huffed quietly.

"Whenever you're ready, just tell me"

She inhaled, then exhaled unsteadily, "I don't feel anything"

He squinted, no expecting that response, "It's still early days… I didn't think you'd feel-"

"No. Not physically"

The revelation hit him like a lightning bolt. He tried to continue rubbing her back soothingly, "At all?"

She shook her head, "I forget that I'm even pregnant… and when I do remember… I just don't feel anything… with Judith and… I remember feeling something instantly… but not this time"

Rick thought long and hard about his next choice of words, "I don't think that's unusual… I think you'll always feel guilty, and even I feel guilty when I find myself get excited about this one… like we're forgetting him… but we're not. We never will. It's gonna take some time but we'll learn how to love them both"

She sniffed, wiping her cheek with her hand.

"Nothing hurts me more than to see you cry", He muttered, tightening his hold on her.

She smirked sadly, "Judith crying?"

His heart ached at just the thought, "Don't".

"Exactly".

Judith's laughter rang throughout the house, and Rick smiled warmly at the sound, before yelling, "You better not drop her!"

"I won't!", Carl called back.

"I need to finish off dinner", Michonne sniffed, breaking away from him.

He grabbed hold of her wrist, "We're not done here, alright?"

She nodded, yanking the knife out of the marble.

"Soup?", Rick didn't mean to sound so disappointed, but he was.

"It's good for you", She countered, placing herself in front of the pot, "And if you don't like it, feel free to make something else"

"Nah. You know breakfast is my specialty… eggs, sausage, bacon, biscuits, waffles-"

"Can we have that tomorrow?", Carl asked from the kitchen door, with Judith on his shoulders.

"Saturday, I promise", He arranged, taking his daughter into his arms, "And what does my sweet little angel want for her birthday breakfast?"

Judith's eyes wondered as she thought about it, "Can I have a big bowl of cereal?"

"A big bowl?"

She pointed to the mixing bowl on the draining board.

Michonne frowned at it, "Sweetie that's too-"

"Of course you can, my little princess", Rick grinned as she beamed excitedly in his arms, "You can have whatever you want"

"Dad, can we go shopping? I haven't really got any vacation clothes?", Carl asked as he took a seat on a bar stool.

Rick raised his eyebrow at his son, "Why? So you can look all brand new for your little girlfriend?"

Carl stared at him, making no attempt to answer.

"The same rules we have on land is the same rules we have on the sea. The two of you will be supervised at all times because you'll only be allowed to see each other when all of us are together, and that's if her parents even allow her around you. And you better hope that I don't have to pull her father from your neck when he sees you"

Carl's mouth hung open for a few moments before he finally breathed, "I literally just asked if we could go shopping, dad?"

"Oh… Yeah, well we can", Rick nodded, realising he went off on a rant.

"Can I come?", Judith requested, still comfortable in his arms.

"Of course you can my sweet little-"

"Oh I need to go shopping too", Michonne piped, pulling open the utensil draw, "We'll go early on Saturday"

"What's wrong with Sunday?"

"We already have plans on Sunday-"

"What?"

"Dad, can I get new shoes too? My other ones are kinda worn out?", Carl quickly requested as he tilted his head at him.

"We leave in three days, and all of a sudden you all need to go shopping?", He shook his head at his family.

"You need clothes too!", she snapped at him, pointing the ladle in his direction, "You're not walking around in plaid shirts, jeans and cowboy boots for the whole week, so I suggest you get used to having your calves and your feet out because we're getting you some shorts and flip flops at least!"

Rick glared at her, while his children chuckled quietly at him. He looked down at Judith, "You think that's funny?"

The little girl giggled, "Mama told you off, Daddy"

"She did, didn't she?"

"Yep".

…

"What the hell happened to you?", Rick leaned forward, squinting at Daryl's jaw, that sported a dark purple bruise.

His friend huffed, throwing himself down in the seat in front of his desk, "I scared Sasha by accident"

Rick's expression didn't change.

"I was coming out the bathroom, she was going to get a glass of water, she thought I was still in the bed, so when I came around the corner, she screamed and popped me right in the jaw"

The urge to laugh was almost too much, "She really got you, didn't she?"

"I'm playing it up too. She made me the biggest breakfast this morning", Daryl smiled wickedly, "I'm hoping to have ribs for dinner when I get home"

Rick chuckled heartily, "I need to let her pop me from time to time, get her to make some of them cookies"

Daryl's eyes lit up, "Don't worry, I'll work on it"

"Hey guys", Rosita stalked in, her ponytail swinging, "Got some things for you to sign off"

Rick groaned, eyeing the pile of papers she dropped on his desk, "Great"

"What happened to you?", Rosita frowned at Daryl.

"Wife popped him", Rick said with glee, "Thought he was a burglar".

Rosita's eyebrows shot up, "Wow, does your wife go to self-defence classes?"

"Nah. She just likes to fight", Daryl shrugged.

"You should tell her to come to my class on the weekend. Yours too Grimes. It's a great workout as well"

"I would tell her, but I don't need her learning new ways to kick my ass", Rick started flipping through the sheets in front of him.

"You can never know too much", Rosita sang as she strolled out the room, just as Shane approached the door, with a very familiar looking woman.

"Take a look who I found outside", Shane wore a wild smile.

Rick's eyebrows shot up, "Mrs Hanson?"

"Oh my god! Rick Grimes! Daryl Dixon! Look at the two of you!", the older woman smiled excitedly as she leered over the two of them.

Both men rose from their seats to hug their old school teacher, and Rick couldn't help but feel a little nervous, as if Michonne would soon jump out from somewhere.

"I cannot believe the three of you are all here working in the police department! All of you were little troublemakers in school!", The woman laughed, tapping Rick on his shoulder, "I'm so proud of you all"

"What are you doing back down here?", Rick asked, his cheeks almost flaming.

"I'm moving back down here with my husband and my son. He's starting as a teacher at the elementary school and my husband and I were getting tired of the city so, we all decided to move back down here"

"Kings Elementary? Our daughter's go there", Daryl informed.

"My daughter will be starting there too", Shane added proudly.

"You all have daughters? Oh god, I've never felt so old", She slapped her hand to her chest, "What about the girls from your class?"

Rick and Shane both exchanged awkward looks before Shane spoke, "Well, uh Lori's doing fine. She has two kids"

"Lori! I remember her! Sweet girl! I remember her sending notes to a certain someone", She nudged Rick.

"Yeah…", His smile tightened.

"You know what, we need to arrange a reunion or something because I would absolutely love to see all of your families and how well you've all done for yourselves. I'm very friendly with Mrs Monroe over at the high school so I'll definitely have a word with her about it"

"That would be great", Shane nodded, and Daryl and Rick mimicked him.

Mrs Hanson rested her hand on Rick's arm, "I wish I had time to catch up with the three of you but I have to meet my husband, but it was lovely to see you boys"

"It was great seeing you too"

"We'll walk you out", Daryl offered.

Mrs Hanson gave Rick another hug, before being lead out the room by Shane, and Daryl followed. He sighed as he walked to his desk, memories of his high school years flashing through his mind. He didn't care to see other classmates that he hadn't kept in touch with, and the more he thought about it, the more he realised that he would hate to endure a reunion with them all. He would, however, enjoy the opportunity to catch up with Mrs Hanson, but due to the fact that he enjoyed breathing, he would never admit such a thing to Michonne.

He hadn't been at his desk long when the woman he feared called, "Yeah?"

"I'm going to be home a little late"

He frowned at the paper in his other hand, "Why? And how late?"

"Have a little work to finish and not too late. You'll probably have to get dinner started"

He huffed dramatically, "Fine"

"We're going out on Sunday, by the way. Lawyers lunch, thing"

His head jerked back and his face pinched, "Why?... Wait, that's why we can't go shopping?"

"Because we have to go and yes, that's why we can't go shopping then. Your mom's picking the kids up in the morning and Shane's going to pick Milly up from her-"

He stepped back behind his desk, "What? You know my mother can't stand-"

"I know, but she'll stand him in front of the kids. I'm going to get ready with Andrea so I can do her hair and I need you to look absolutely immaculate because the D.A is going to be there as well as a few of the county judges-"

"Why are you unloading all of this on me now?", He squinted at the wall in front of him.

"Because I don't like giving you time to think of an excuse not to come".

He snarled.

"Your new tux is already in your closet-"

"You got me a new tux? If this was such a big deal then why-"

"I already told you why, Rick! It's a five course meal, so you'll only have to pretend to be human as opposed to a bear for two or three hours tops, okay?"

He rolled his eyes and curled his lip in annoyance as he sat back in his chair.

"Stop making faces", She warned, "We're going and we're going to look nice and you're going to pretend to enjoy yourself"

"Fine. Just fine-"

"Good".


	34. Chapter 34

**Chapter 34:**

 _'You need help'_

"He really went all out. Again"

Michonne looked around the dinner, which was void of its usual red and white decor, and filled to the brim with pink and green decorations. The birthday cake, which had its own table, was almost as tall as the birthday girl herself. The parking lot had been sectioned off, and it held a small petting zoo with baby farm animals, as well as carnival treats.

Carl was with his cousin Gerald, eating their weight in popcorn as they watched the younger children play, while Rick stood watching Judith proudly. Nothing attracted her more to him than seeing him lavish his daughter, and she gazed at him with an adoring smile.

"Yeah…", She glanced at Andrea.

"I hope she marries a rich man for her sake"

Michonne cackled, "And Rick's sake"

"How y'all doing?", Both women turned around to see Shane stepping through the door with Milly in front of him.

"Hey!", Michonne smiled, "How are you doing Milly?"

"I'm fine", The little girl's eyes were wandering all over the establishment in awe.

"Why don't you go find Judith?"

Milly didn't need to be told twice, as she handed her father her backpack and sprinted away.

"How are you, Shane?", Andrea asked in a flirtatious manner.

"Please. I'm right here", Michonne almost shuddered, "Are you going to stay for the party Shane?"

He looked around and nodded, "I can, if you don't mind"

"Yeah, sure. Adult drinks are being served on that side of the bar and we'll have our own food set out on the table shortly"

"Why thank you very much", He smiled, though his eyes were on Andrea.

Michonne sighed as she stepped away from them, and into the path of Lily. The little girl looked up with her with the most miserable expression.

"What's wrong Lily pad?", Michonne crouched down in front of her.

"Who's that girl?", She pointed at Milly scornfully.

"That is Milly. She's a friend of Judith's. You can be friends with her too", Michonne suggested.

"I don't like her", Lily scowled, and Michonne could have sworn she was looking at the girl's father, "Judith's _my_ cousin"

Michonne flinched, hoping to quickly change the girl's attitude, "You know who else didn't want to share? Your uncle Rick. He didn't like it when me and your daddy used to play without him, but then he'd play with us and now look, we're all really good friends"

Lily eyed her, not completely taken by the short tale.

"Why don't you give Milly a chance? The three of you can play together?"

Lily didn't move a muscle.

"You know what, you're lucky because you have Judith, and Carl and you have Ally, Cleo, and Demi, and you get to see them a lot, don't you?"

Lily nodded.

"Milly's cousins live in the next town, and she doesn't get to see Judith and Carl a lot, so when she does, she can't wait to play with them, and they can't wait to play with her, too. So why don't you be another person for Milly to play with when she does come over?"

Lily seemed to battle with the idea, but reluctantly nodded, "Okay"

"That's my little Lily pad", She kissed her on the forehead, and the little girl ran off to try aunt's advice.

Michonne huffed as she stood up straight, and noticed Sasha hovering beside her, "Your daughter doesn't want to share".

Sasha pursed her lips and shook her head, "She gets that from her father"

Michonne chuckled, "She looks just like him when he scowls"

"She does! I told him to stop doing it around her".

"Mimi! Look it please!"

They both looked down to see Ally holding Cleo by her middle, offering her little sister to Michonne. All three of the Rhee's daughter's sported red bows in their hair, and wore red t-shirt and little light blue jeans. Michonne cooed over them, before reaching down and taking Cleo from her.

"Thank you Ally", Michonne exhaled as she bounced the little girl on her hip.

Ally's pony tails whipped back and forth as she looked around her, "Where daddy go?"

"Your daddy's right there Ally", Sasha pointed to Glenn, who appeared to be having a deep conversation with Rick and Daryl.

"God, I lost two of my-", Maggie burst through the door, and stopped panting when she saw both of her daughter's, while she held the third in her arms. She huffed, before yelling over everyone, "Glenn!"

The man jumped as he looked over at his wife with wide eyes. He quickly scurried over to them while Daryl and Rick sniggered behind him.

"I'm gonna _cake_ him!", Maggie fumed.

"Cake him?", Sasha repeated, confused.

"I can't say K-I-L-L because my oldest is a parrot", Maggie explained.

"Oh", Michonne nodded, "Good idea"

Glenn approached them and took Cleo from Michonne, and held Ally's hand, giving his wife an apologetic look, "Sorry".

"Give Ally to Beth, you watch Cleo", She instructed firmly.

"Got it", He called, leading the kids away.

She tucked a few strands of her hair behind her ear as she turned back to the women, "Glad y'all did this. If we had gone to the county fair then he would have lost the two of them".

"Let me see this little bundle!", Sasha cooed as she took Demi from her arms, "Hey there, princess!"

"Hey mom", Carl called as he strolled over to her with his cousin in tow, "Is the food ready yet?"

"God. I saw you both with your heads in the popcorn machine", She narrowed her eyes at them.

Both boys looked at her as if that meant nothing to them.

"It will be ready soon, okay?"

Their shoulders fell, but both still nodded.

"Michonne, where is that son of mine?", Susan popped up beside her, drying her hands on an apron, "It can't find the sparklers for Judith's burger?"

"Susan, why are you making her burger?", Michonne frowned at her.

"I'm not making it", Susan shook her head, "I'm just putting on the final touches on it. Had to make it special"

Michonne held back her groan, "The sparklers should be in the box with the candles for her cake"

"Oh alright…", His mother began to turn around, then stopped when she caught sight of Carl and Gerald, "My poor grandbabies look hungry, I'll tell them to hurry up"

Michonne smiled at the older woman's back as she disappeared behind the bar.

"I'm taking her outside for the big one", Rick announced as he held Judith on his hip.

"What's the big one?", She frowned, adjusting her daughter's tiara on her head. Michonne didn't agree with her wearing the piece, as she didn't want to her to lose it, but she caved, to save both her daughter, and effectively Rick, from tears.

"The big gift"

Judith looked like she was ready to implode. Michonne nodded, resting her hand on Sasha's back to urge her outside, "He's not done"

They all piled out the diner and into the parking lot, where Michonne watched Rick with narrowed eyes, trying to figure out what he could have possibly have gotten her.

"I bet it's a gold painted horse", Andrea guessed dryly, causing Michonne, Sasha and Maggie to giggle.

"Look over there", Rick pointed and Judith sucked in as much air as her lungs could hold.

Daryl and Leon carried out a toy car, that was styled as white Range Rover with black detail. The little licence plate read her name and a big pink bow was on the front.

She wrapped her arms around Rick's neck, "Thank you daddy!"

"Your welcome princess. Don't forget to thank your mother and your brother too".

He kissed her cheek before she leapt from his arms and ran over to it, her eyes wide with excitement as she jumped up and down, "Thank you, mama! Thank you, Carl!"

The men put it down and Judith climbed in hastily, her eyes darting all over the new toy vehicle.

Michonne stepped over to Rick, "You have a problem"

"Leave me alone, woman", His eyes didn't leave his daughter, "Look how happy she is"

"You need help-"

"Mama look!", Judith called out to her.

"That's beautiful baby!", Michonne called back with an exaggerated smile, before looking back at Rick, "You're sick"

"Are you hungry? I asked them to make a special dish for you, made strictly from hope and tears"

"Oh really? I'm pretty sure they offered me your balls? They were pretty small? Grape sized, in fact?"

He finally looked down at her, smirking, "I wish they offered you my balls. It would be the closest they've gotten to your mouth in a long time"

Her laugh came from deep within the pit of her stomach, as she whacked him on his arm. He chuckled too, pulling her in front of him and resting his head on her shoulder, "Just look at our baby girl"

Michonne sighed happily, resting her arms over his, "She's going to be a big girl soon. She's eight, Rick"

"Don't remind me", He groaned, "I still remember when we brought her home from the hospital like it was yesterday"

"I know", her head leaned on his as she watched Judith ride her new car with Lily at her side. Her eyes then darted over to Carl and Gerald, who looked as miserable as Lily had earlier, "We need to feed them now"

"Yeah, come on".

…

"That cake was absolutely beautiful", Maggie sang, dropping her fork in her plate, "Rick needs to tell me where he got it from. Did you have any?"

"Nah, not in the mood for cake", Michonne shrugged, "I'll probably have some of that ice cream though"

"You're pretty picky with this pregnancy, huh?", Sasha frowned, bouncing Demi on her lap.

"Excuse me?", Maggie's eyebrows shot up.

Sasha froze, while Michonne gave Maggie a weak smile, "Yeah…"

"You are?", Maggie leaned forward with wide eyes, "Seriously?"

She nodded.

"Why didn't you tell me?!"

"We were trying to keep quiet, I'm not even three months yet", She quickly explained.

Maggie huffed, scooping closer to Michonne to wrap her arms around her, "I'm so happy for you both"

"Thank you", she hugged her friend back.

"Don't worry about it, okay? Just sit back and enjoy it"

She appreciated her friend's kind words, but they didn't register to her, though she still smiled, ready to thank her again, when her eyes fell upon a familiar woman, who stepped through the door. Michonne slid out the booth, her brow furrowing angrily as she looked at Lori.

"Is that who I think it is?", Sasha leaned closer to Michonne.

"It is", Maggie confirmed, "Michonne, let Rick handle it, please"

Michonne ignored her as she began the short walk over to the woman. Lori noticed Michonne, and quickly straightened up, tucking her hair behind her ear.

"Can I help you?", Michonne asked calmly.

"I'd like my daughter, please. I saw her father's car parked outside and I knew Rick wouldn't invite Shane on his own to the party", Lori's eyes still trailed behind her.

"Shane is over there, if you'd like to speak to him then I'd be more than happy to send him to you outside"

"That won't be necessary. I would just like my daughter, then I'll leave"

Michonne crossed her arms, her tone firmer, "She's here with her father. If you'd like to take her then I suggest you let him know. You have joint custody, so unless he has told me or Rick otherwise, you have no right to take her on his designated days"

Lori frowned at her, "What are you? A lawyer?"

Michonne smiled, "I am, actually"

The woman's face fell, but only for a second, "You can't stop me from taking my daughter"

"No, I can't. But there are three other officers here that can tell you that you're not allowed to do that".

Lori shook her head, "I am not letting you brainwash another one of my children"

The rage was starting to bubble within Michonne, "I would like talk to you outside, Lori"

"I want-"

"I don't care, what you want. This is a children's birthday party, specifically my daughter's birthday party, so I won't allow you to cause a scene here, because you will regret it if you do", Michonne warned, "Now, can you step outside please?"

Lori watched her with a pensive expression for a few moments, before turning around, yanking open the door. Michonne followed after her and the two women walked over to the section of the parking lot that was still in use by cars. She looked around, making sure they were out of earshot, as she knew the conversation wouldn't remain a calm, and civil one.

"Let it all out Lori", Michonne sighed, resting her hands on her hips, "What's the problem here?"

"I wasn't told about this", She waved her hand towards the building, "And I don't appreciate-"

"You know what I'm talking about", Michonne titled her head at her, "What's the real problem here? Because it's not about Milly, and I doubt it's even about Carl"

"What are you talking about?"

"We were sitting right in there", Michonne pointed back at the diner, "When you learnt that Carl wasn't interested in keeping any contact with you, and months passed, you stayed back and you didn't push the issue any further, then you have that little argument with Rick and all of and sudden you decide you want to fight us for custody for him-"

Lori's brow furrowed at her, "I don't understand what you're getting at here-"

"You do understand. You know exactly what I'm talking about. You went crying to Rick and he helped you, purely because of your daughter but still, he helped you. You like the kind of man he is now, that's the man you wanted all those years ago, right?"

Lori shook her head as a little chuckle left her, "You think you have it all figured out don't you?"

Footsteps approached Michonne from behind her, and she didn't need to turn around to see who it was, "Go back inside Rick"

"What's going on?", He questioned, his eyes on Lori.

"We're talking, now go", Michonne repeated firmly.

He seemed to assess the situation before him, his cloudy blue eyes darting back and forth between them, "I'm right there"

"That's fine", gave him a single nod, waiting for him to leave again before continuing on with their conversation, "Well?"

"Well, what?", Lori shrugged, "You want me to agree with that ridiculous statement of yours? I want my son because his rightful place is with me-"

"Going after Carl won't get you Rick. It won't even get you Carl-"

"Because you've turned him against me!"

"No! You did that! You did that when you left him!"

"Oh god!", Lori threw her hands up in the air as she looked around, "Are you ever going to let that go? I won't apologise for something I did thirteen years ago-"

"Fourteen years ago! He's fifteen years old!"

"I know how old he is!"

"That's all you know! You couldn't tell me anything else about him because you haven't raised him, I have! And you have the audacity to ask for your rights back to a child you don't even know!"

"I have a right to know him!", Lori quickly countered, her eyes bouncing all over Michonne.

She exhaled, one hand still on her hip, "If he wanted to know you then I'd agree. But he doesn't. And what you're doing won't get you closer to Carl or Rick"

Lori huffed, her cheeks flamed, looking down at her shoes as she shifted from foot to foot, "I'm not giving up. You don't deserve them, my daughter does. My daughter deserves a father that will do all this for her. She deserves to have her big brother around. We both do. You… you don't. I'm sorry but you don't… Fair enough, you helped raise Carl, but what the hell do you do for Rick? I've seen him fawn over you like you're God's gift to man and yet, you look at him like he's a chore, like you'd rather be anywhere else! You don't appreciate what you have!"

Michonne scanned the area behind Lori, "I agree with that to an extent. I don't know what I did to deserve them, and I probably don't show them how much they mean to me enough, but they're my life, and I don't need to prove that to you, or anyone else"

Lori glared at her, her eyes wet with tears, spitting out her words, "You don't deserve them-"

"But you do?!" Michonne snapped, stepping closer to her, "Do you honestly think you deserve my son? That sweet, caring boy in there? What the hell have you done to deserve him?! I have poured twelve years of my fucking life into him and I don't even think I deserve him!"

The woman slapped her hand against her face as she wiped a stray tear away, looking away from Michonne.

"And Rick? I promise you, you wouldn't even know what to do with him, so don't you dare think, for even a second, that you would", She breathed, gathering herself as she stepped back, smoothing her dress, "If you want to continue in with this case then I want you to understand, the only thing you'll be coming away with is a bill, and believe me, I will leave you in a financial crisis"

Lori's chest rose and fell deeply, her gaze on the floor as her face flushed.

Michonne began to turn around, "I'll send Shane out. Wait here"

She took a long, calming breath as she walked back to the diner. Rick was at the door, with his mother and brother either side of him, and Shane was not far behind them. She knew it took a lot for him to stay back, and even more for him to keep quiet, and she appreciated him greatly for listening to her. Shane stepped past the Grimes family when she approached them, and she tipped her head towards Lori. He gave her a single nod and made his way over to the mother of his child.

"What does she want?", Susan almost spat out, her arms folded across her chest.

"Milly. She wanted to take her home", Michonne answered, "It's fine. I told her to talk to Shane"

"That woman is a mess", Jeffrey sighed, facing his mother, "Come on, mom"

Susan was huffing and puffing with rage, "I swear, if it wasn't my grand baby's birthday, I would have gone over there and smacked the mess right out of her!"

"Mom."

"Alright. Fine. Let's go in", the woman smoothed her apron and stomped away, with Jeffrey behind her.

Rick rested his hands at his sides once the two of them were alone, "Later?"

She exhaled tiredly, placing her hand on his arm, "Yeah. Later"


	35. Chapter 35

**Chapter 35:**

 _'You are amazing'_

"Your daughter would probably kill me if she knew I chose to do this now, but I have another hour before I have to start getting ready for this lawyers lunch thang, so I thought I'd stop by"

Rick crouched down beside Michonne's mother's grave and put a bouquet of pink and white carnations by her headstone.

"I'm sorry it took so long for me to get here, and I'm sorry for not getting a chance to say goodbye before you passed. It's somethan' I'll always be ashamed of…", He scratched his brow with his thumb as he exhaled, "Carl's been good. Well, he's done some stupid thangs here and there but… overall he's a good kid… So is Judith. She's eight now, getting to be a big girl and I'm struggling to come to terms with that… but I'm glad, they're both here... and they're both healthy, so I can't complain"

He looked around the empty yard, glad he could be alone to speak his mind.

"She's pregnant, by the way… your gonna be a grandmother again… but she's not… she's not having a good time at the moment, and I wish you were here to help her with that. I've wished you were here for a lot thangs, cause you always knew how to help her. I'm so worried about her that I can't even get to sleep until she does, and I'm trying- I really am trying but it's so hard when I get my strength from her, and she gets hers from you"

He exhaled, standing up and looking at the picture of her on the marble. He grinned, glad it was one of her smiling, as the woman's smile was the most contagious.

"I'll be back, and I'll bring her, I promise. Bye mom"

He stepped carefully, having being told since he was a young boy that it was disrespectful to step on someone's grave. He kept his head down, until he reached his father's headstone.

He crouched, like he had with Genevieve's, and placed a bouquet of white Lilies down beside the other colourful array of flowers, "I know mom's probably up here more than any of us, and that shouldn't be the case. Jeffrey's down, we're going on a cruise tomorrow so, I'll make sure he comes down too…. And I hope you heard the good news… you're gonna be a grandfather again. I told Michonne I think it's another boy… so I guess we'll have to see"

He pinched his nose bridge with his thumb and index finger, "We went camping. I showed Carl the tree, the one he fell off all those years ago… he wasn't too pleased… but they loved it. If you saw Michonne, you would have laughed your ass off… I damn near did. I wished you were there to see it all… And I wish you all could have stuck around longer… you, Genie and my- my little boy… I wish I had more time with you all because it just wasn't- it wasn't enough"

Rick stood up, dragging his hand over his face as he wiped his tears, "I need to spend more time with mom… I feel bad for not telling her that Michonne's pregnant again… but it's just because we're scared. We don't know what to expect this time around and I don't think she can handle another loss. I don't think I can either… but we'll tell her. I promise… and I promise I'll be back soon… Bye dad."

…

"Where the hell are you?!"

Rick frowned at the screen on his dashboard, "I'm about… two minutes away. Why? You told me it starts at two and I'm on time?"

"Oh, thank God. Okay someone will show you in-"

"Michonne, I don't want anyone to show me anythan'. I want you to meet me out front-"

"Stop being antisocial! Just get here and that's it!"

She hung up the phone and Rick growled. It was bad enough that he had to arrive alone to the occasion, and he didn't want to walk in alone either. The function was being held at an opulent stately home on the edge of town, and Rick would have been impressed, but he wasn't in the greatest mood, with all things considered.

He drove around a grand fountain, in the courtyard, and a valet was stood waiting for him by the large front doors. Rick exhaled as long, suffering breath as he climbed out the car.

"Good evening Mr Grimes, please go through to the garden", the young man smiled as he held his car door open.

Rick frowned at him, wondering how he knew his name, but he relented on any questioning as he wanted a drink in his hand, so he went stomping up the front steps. The hall was large, and lined with white flowers in tall black vases. A white board on a black easel was in the middle of hall, giving directions to the garden. He strolled on, realising it was straight ahead.

The sound of soft music, specifically violins, poured in as he got closer, and he couldn't help but notice that that was all he could hear. It was as if he was the first one there.

"There you are".

Rick's forehead wrinkled, his steps slowing, "Mom? What the hell are you doing here?"

"Don't say 'hell'. It's not nice", She lightly scolded, dressed in a bright pink dress and jacket, with a large pink hat, "Come on. Hurry up now"

He joined her at the door, still looking at her strangely as she linked arms with him, "What is going-"

His sentence came to an abrupt halt when he looked beyond his mother. A row of violinist were only feet away from them, and the garden was adorned with white flowers, with tables that had crystal ornaments in the centre and chairs covered in white covers with silver bows on the back. His friends and family were all sat in rows separated into two columns, looking back at him with warm and elated smiles. A white carpet sprinkled with light pink rose petals led to a wedding flower arch, and beneath it stood Michonne, wearing a fishtail dress that exposed her back. Her hair was in a bun, with a delicate diamond crown around it. Rick was beside himself.

"We're doing things a little differently today", His mother nudged him, "Now I mean it, come on".

Rick couldn't speak. He wanted to, but nothing left his mouth. He wouldn't have been able to walk if it wasn't for his mother tugging him along.

"I need you to perk up, son", She whispered.

"How?", Was all he could choke out.

"She did it all. It wasn't easy either. Everyone here's got a big mouth"

Rick coughed out a chuckle, wiping his cheek with his free hand, "I thought I was done crying today"

He had almost forgotten how to breath. He could hardly focus on the faces around him as he tried to gather himself. It was as if he was dreaming, as he didn't expect to be the last one to arrive to his own wedding.

His eyes managed to catch Judith, who stood beside Carl. He thought they both looked beautiful, beaming at him with eagerness. He was also shocked to see his son's hair shorter, and he wondered what it cost Michonne to get him in a barber's chair.

"Daddy! Doesn't mama look pretty?", Judith hissed, pointing at her mother, her high ponytail bouncing when she moved.

"She looks perfect", He agreed as he passed her, "So do you two"

"Time for me to leave you now", His mother held the other side of his face as she kissed his cheek, "Remember to speak up, too"

Andrea took Michonne's bouquet from her, before taking a seat, along with his mother.

Rick took Michonne's hands in his as he sighed, "You are amazing"

"Stop it, I don't want to cry yet", She giggled, her smile was the most radiant that Rick had ever seen.

He gave her hands a little squeeze, "You are"

Milton stepped forward, holding a black book in his hands, giving them both a little nod, "We are gathered here today…"

…

"How's it feel to me Mrs Rick Grimes again?"

She rolled her eyes, "Oh here we go, it's just Mrs Grimes"

He stroked her fingers with his thumb, "I can't believe you did this without me knowing? You planned our whole wedding right under my nose?"

"I did. It wasn't easy, Judith caught me looking at my dress at one point… had to make her promise not to say anything"

Rick snuck a glance at her daughter, who was looking from the plate in front of her, up to her brother, pouting. Carl shook his head, taking her plate and scooping all the cooked vegetables on to his plate. Judith grinned at him.

Michonne snickered, "She has a stash of marshmallows hidden under her bed"

He chortled heartily, "Well of course that would keep her quiet"

"Did you like it?", She asked, her fingers stroking the back of his neck, while he still held her other hand.

"I'm still in shock. I literally walked into my own wedding. This is…", His eyes gazed at everyone sat around their tables, tucking into their meals, "...The most, romantic thang that could ever happen. I can never beat this… in fact, I wish I thought of it first-"

"Stop it"

"I really do. You deserve somethan' like this, not me"

"Don't say that", She furrowed her brow at him, "You deserve all this and more. And I loved doing this for you"

He sighed, giving her a crooked smile, "Thank you"

"You're welcome".

He watched her with adoring eyes for a few moments, then lowered his tone, "I told your mom your pregnant"

Her chest sank, her brow furrowing in confusion, "What?"

"I went to her grave earlier. And my dad's, gave them some flowers…"

Her eyes sparkled, tears already perched to fall, "What did you talk about?"

"I just kept them up to date with everythan'... I promised her I'd bring you with me next time"

She sniffed, wiping her eyes with the back of her fingers, "I'll come. I will… I wanted to…"

"I know. We'll go together"

The sound of cutlery tapping against glass brought their attention to Maggie, who stood at the table closest to then.

She cleared her throat, holding a cordless microphone to her lips, "Hey everyone! I thought I'd say a little somethan' for the newlyweds… since I was there when they very first met and I saw the way Rick looked at Michonne, and honestly, it was like he had just found his reason to live…"

Rick gave Michonne's hand a little squeeze as he glanced at her.

"And Michonne, bless her, she looked like a deer caught in headlights, but we all know how Rick is so we can't really blame her"

The tables erupted with laughter, while Rick looked down at Michonne, his face blank, "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

She shook her head, "Hush, just listen".

"But seriously, when she finally got that lasso around that wild horse, she was the only one who knew how to ride him", Maggie froze in horror once the final word left her mouth.

Everyone looked at her with the same horrified expression, before Daryl yelled, "Well, damn!"

A chorus of chuckles followed and Maggie couldn't help but join in. Rick raised his eyebrows at his new wife, "Ain't that the truth"

"Stop that", She warned, her eyes flashing with amusement.

"I apologise Mrs Grimes, Mr Parker… and daddy", Maggie sighed, glancing at Rick's mother, Michonne's father, and her own father, "It sounded more romantic… when I wrote it…Oh boy. Well I'm just going to wrap this up, and hand the mic over to Andrea!"

Andrea rose from her seat with an evil grin, taking the mic from Maggie, "Hello everyone, as you all know, I'm another person that's been there from the very beginning, and even though Rick and I haven't always seen eye to eye… we'll we can't stand each other… but despite that, I know that he would give her the moon if he could, and so for that, I love him just as much as I love her and I can only wish to have someone that makes me even half as happy as he makes her"

Rick frowned, dabbing his cheek with his free hand as his friends and family clapped, "The hell? Am I crying again?"

Michonne sniggered at him, "You are! Wasn't that beautiful?"

"I'm gonna be dehydrated by the end of the day", He muttered, wiping his eyes for a countless time, "Damn Andrea"

"Alright folks, last one for the night", Daryl took the mic from Andrea, "'Chonne really caught me off guard with this, so I had to come up with somethan' fast… got my lovely wife to help me, and she told me to tell a little story about the two of them… so I thought I'd pick the time when I was taking out the trash one night when 'Chonne was my neighbour-"

Rick, Michonne and even Sasha, all shouted in unison, rears lifting off their seats and arms outstretched in panic, "Not that one!"

Daryl snickered as everyone roared with laughter, "I'll tell a different one then…"

Rick's heart beat slowed to a stable pace as he sat back, pinching his nose bridge, "Oh thank God"

"I would have killed him. I would have killed him", Michonne huffed, slipping one hand back into Rick's, while the other returned to the nape of his neck.

"It wasn't a pleasant time, Mr Grimes had just passed and, naturally, Rick was torn, and he was damn near ready to tear down anyone who got in his way, even me… but as soon as he saw his 'Chonne, he found himself. Almost like she was his light at the end of a long, dark tunnel. And I know from personal experience, that it takes a lot to snap out of those moments, but when you find your light…", He leered, lovingly at Sasha for a moment, "Everythan' ain't as hard anymore, and it ain't as scary. So I'm glad my brother has his light. My 'Chonne has hers"

Daryl raised his glass to them as the cheering and the clapping ensued, and Rick found himself snatching the napkin off his lap.

"That was absolutely beautiful", Michonne beamed, turning to Rick, "Jesus Christ, it's like someone opened the floodgates, huh?"

"My eyes actually hurt from crying", Rick shook his head, "They're puffy, ain't they?"

She examined him, "Yeah, a little… But it's okay"

"Look at what you've done to me today"

"I love you", she hummed, her fingers playing with his curls.

He melted, bringing her hand up to his face and kissing her palm, "I love you too"

...

"I'm glad the two of you finally did this again. This better be the last time too"

Rick snickered at his father in law as they stood at the bar, "I promise it will"

The man held his tumbler in his hand, "I know you always want to give her what she wants but, a divorce should never be that easy"

Rick shook his head as he disagreed, "It was far from easy. She broke my heart when she asked for it-"

"It don't doubt that at all, son. I don't. But I want you both to have some fighting spirit this time around. It ain't always going to be a bed of roses, sometimes there's going to be thorns. Once you accept that, and vow to deal with it as a team… you can move mountains together"

Rick absorbed the man's words, swirling his ice cube around in his own glass, "I'll remember that"

"You better. Or I'll kick your ass", Donald gave him a pat on his shoulder with his free hand as he stood from the bar stool, "I'm gonna go find that lovely lady of mine"

"Go on", Rick smiled, taking a sip of his scotch, his eyes on the man's back as he walked away.

"Well look at you"

Sasha took a seat where Donald once sat, a champagne flute already in her hand, "How's it feel to be a married man again?"

Rick squinted, "Almost like a dream but... nothings really changed... I've still seen her as my wife even after the divorce"

She seemed to weigh up her options for a reply, "I understand. I'd forget that you two were divorced sometimes. But I'm glad it's official again, I can go back to calling her Mrs Grimes"

"So can I", He smiled as his eyes found Michonne, who was sat at their table talking with Glenn, "That was some speech your husband gave"

"It was, wasn't it? He's good at that stuff", She took a sip of her beverage, "Oh, here we go. Look at them"

Rick followed her line of sight, and saw Judith and Lily hovering by the Cake, "Great. We're gonna go over there and see their little finger prints on it"

"Lily doesn't even like cake. She's probably trying to steal some for her father"

Rick's eyes darted around for a moment for his friend. He found Daryl, stood watching the two little girl also, but he must have sensed their eyes on him, as he soon glanced over at Rick and Sasha, then swiftly turned the other way.

Rick chortled, calling out, "We saw you!"

"No you didn't!", His friend called back, still facing the other way.

"Time for the bride and groom to share their first dance… well, second, first dance as man and wife!... again…", Glenn spoke awkwardly in the mick, leading Michonne out to the dance floor.

"Go on", Sasha encouraged, holding up her glass to him.

Rick huffed, standing up and draining his tumbler. He casually strolled over to Michonne, who was already swaying in time to the song and gently singing along.

" _Cause I love you_ …", She smiled as he held her waist, " _Baby, I'm thinking about you_ …"

"You know I hate dancing", His tone was husky in her ear.

She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, "You're a good dancer though"

"Doesn't mean I enjoy it"

"Oh stop it, you big bear", She teased.

He gazed into her doughy eyes, "Did I tell you how much I love you?"

"Sing to me"

"Not that much", He deadpanned, causing her head to roll back as she laughed.

"I can't stand you", she grinned.

"And I can't stand to be without you, Mrs Grimes"

She sighed happily, "I'm going to have to get used to that again"

"You were always Mrs Grimes to me", He admitted as his brow started to furrow, "You're getting a little tipsy there, ain't you?"

"Just a little. I had one too many glasses of wine-"

"Don't get too drunk. I have plans for you later, Mrs Grimes"

Her eyebrow raised at him as she purred, "What kind of plans?"

"The kind of plans that involve your legs over my shoulders", He winked at her as he ran his tongue over his bottom lip.

His comment had the desired effect as her chest rose, "You have no shame"

"I want you to keep that garter on too"

"And my crown?"

His eyes rolled up, studying the piece as it sparkled in the light, "Well that's new, ain't it?"

She narrowed her eyes at him.

His mind quickly picked up on the new topic, "How much did all this cost, by the way?"

Her lips pursed as she rolled her shoulders back, her hold on him tightening when she stopped swaying.

Rick relented, "Alright. Fine. Later."

"Just enjoy it-", She bit out.

"I am. Believe me, I am"

"Good. After yesterday, I just want us to have uninterrupted family fun"

He tensed when he remembered her argument with Lori. The fact that the woman turned up at Judith's birthday party and took her daughter was incomprehensible to him, though, he was almost glad it happened, as it helped him figure out what he was going to do in regards to his son's request.

"May we cut in?", Carl requested, holding his hand out to his mother, while Judith looked up at her father as she bounced on the spot excitedly.

"Of course you can", Rick released Michonne, and took his daughter in his arms, while Carl began to dance with his mother.

"You having fun princess?", Rick grinned at her.

The little girl nodded, "I ate tiny burgers"

He threw his head back as he chuckled, "I'm glad that's what made you happy today. Doesn't mama look beautiful?"

"Yeah…", Judith agreed, then whispered, "I saw her dress before"

"Did you? Well ain't you a good girl for keeping that a secret for mama?"

"Yep. And I told the man at the door that you had a gun"

Rick's grin returned, "Was he making mama laugh?"

She nodded, her curls bouncing at the back of her head.

"That's a good girl. Remember, any man that makes mama laugh, that ain't family, has to know that daddy has a gun, okay?"

"Okay".

"That's my girl".

"So is the cruise kinda like… your honeymoon?", Carl asked with a frown, stepping in sync with Michonne.

"I guess it is", Rick shrugged, "We can tell them we're newlyweds and see if they give us free stuff"

"Oh, we are definitely doing that", Michonne nodded in agreement.

"Grandma said it's probably going to be really expensive", Carl gave a concerned look to both his parents.

"Don't worry, you'll be able to enjoy yourself without emptying our account", Rick reassured.

"My friend Mikey said his grandparents went on a cruise for their anniversary, and they said a bottle of water was six dollars"

Rick almost dropped his daughter, "Six dollars? For a bottle of water?"

"Why did you tell him that?", Michonne shook her head at Carl, "Now he's going to make us drink the sea water to save money"

Laughter burst from Carl's lips, and the two of them leaned on each other as they chuckled at her joke.

Judith giggled, "Mama and Carl are funny"

Rick smirked at them, "Ain't they?"

He was cloud nine with his family. Dancing with his little girl and watching his son and his wife strengthen they're already unbreakable bond. He never expected to be a married man again by that evening, and it saddened him to think the day would have to end. He wanted to celebrate another new chapter with Michonne for as long as possible.


	36. Chapter 36

**Chapter 36:**

 _'I can't stand you'_

Michonne sat on the bathroom floor in her wedding dress, which was created by the knees from where she had gathered the material up so she could walk. She dabbed her cheeks with a balled up tissue and dropped her head back against the cabinet, exhausted both physically and mentally.

The bathroom door opened, and Rick stepped in, switching on the light. He froze when he saw her, his eyes moved like pinballs as he took in the scene before him. He slowly inhaled, closing the bathroom door behind him.

"You know… I think it's a little worrying that you're sitting in the dark, crying… Hours after our wedding", He crouched down and took a seat beside her.

A small smile began to tug on the corners of her lips as she played with the tissue.

"I think I know why…"

She sniffed, her gaze still low as the smile faded, "I threw up…"

He brought his knees up, resting his arms on them, his own gaze on the bathtub in front of them.

"I only remembered when you brought it up. I had two glasses of wine-"

"Michonne-"

"I don't know what's wrong with me", the tears began falling hard and fast, "I'm so detached from this child… and it's not that I don't want to love it because I do- I so badly do… I want to feel that same, indescribable attachment that I feel for Carl and Judith… I felt it with our last baby, but with this one… It's like I'm not wired right. That feelings not there and it's… I just feel like I'm not meant to be a mother to anyone else. I lost that right when I lost him, and this is… my punishment. I'm blessed with this little, tiny person inside me… that I don't even deserve"

Rick's head raised from its bowed position. He dragged both his hands over his face, his eyes wet with tears, "I hate that you feel that way Michonne"

She didn't bother to look at him. Her gaze stayed on the tissue, which was damp from her tears.

"You slipped up… all this is hurting you in a way that I can only understand to an extent, but I don't think you'd feel the way you do if you didn't love this child, It wouldn't chew you up this way…", He reached over and held her hand, "I think things are gonna happen differently this time around, because of what happened the last time, and it won't be easy, but you'll get there-"

"What if I don't?", She frowned, annoyed with his choice of words, "What if the baby comes and I still feel nothing? Then what? Do we just sit back and wait until I just magically start to feel something?"

He shook his head, "I don't think it'll last that long-"

"Why? What makes you think that?", She snatched her hand away from his, "What can _you_ see that I can't? This isn't something you can sweep under the rug and just hope it will rectify itself-"

"I am not saying that, Michonne", He issued in a firm tone, "That's far from what I'm saying-"

"I don't love my baby, Rick!", She looked at him with angry eyes, her fists balled on her lap, "Do you know what kind of person that makes me?! I don't deserve to carry this child if I don't love it! I don't deserve to be called a mother if I only love some of my children! I make myself sick right now and I just I wish I was someone else! Someone who doesn't have this problem, someone who found out they were pregnant and fell in love instantly and had a textbook pregnancy without all the other ugly stuff!"

He raked his fingers through his hair, silent for a few seconds, looking everywhere but at her, "I'm so sorry that you feel this way"

She dropped her head back again, finished with her outburst. She knew it wasn't fair for her to unload that part of her mind on him in such a way, especially on their wedding night, but she couldn't bottle it up anymore, "So am I"

"I don't know… I don't have a clue, how to get you through this. I wish I did, but I'm stuck here…", His legs sank to the floor, and he offered her his hand, "I will do whatever it takes to help you. I will do everything… and anything I can"

She looked down at his hand with puffy eyes.

"I don't want you to go through this alone. I won't allow that".

She released a long, exasperated sigh, placing her hand on his, and he squeezed it as he brought it up to his lips, kissing the back of her hand.

"I'm sorry", She whispered, feeling as if she had ruined such a special day for the two of them.

"Don't apologise. I mean that. As much as it pained me to hear… you finally told me how you felt. And that's all I wanted"

She scooted closer to him, and he encased her in his arms. All the tension she held seeped away, and she moulded to him.

"...You think we should talk about it more? You haven't even seen a doctor yet?"

She closed her eyes as she gave a little nod, "Maybe... "

"...We'll try that then…"

…

"Is that our plane?"

"It is", Michonne stood holding Judith's hand by the large windows at the airport. The sun had barely risen, and yet they were all wide awake, and in some instances, grumpy.

"Can I sit by the window?", Judith questioned, a smile beginning to spread on her face.

"Of course you can. Mama's stomach can't handle that view".

"Yes", Judith made a fist and punched the air in excitement, causing Michonne to chuckle.

"Oh Judy… Mama loves you so much", She dropped her arm around her daughter's shoulders, holding her against her hip.

"I love you too, mama", Judith chirped back.

"Hey, mom".

Carl approached them with his father, holding a little green bag in his hand.

"Show your mother and your sister your little gift for Lauren. One of them might end up wearing it instead of Lauren, if her father has anythan' to do with it", Rick muttered tiredly.

Carl side eyed his father as he reached inside the bag and retrieved a silver necklace with a dolphin pendant on the end.

"That's pretty!", Judith stepped forward to get a closer look, "Is that a dolphin?"

"It is", Carl nodded, letting her hold it, "You think Lauren will like it?"

The little girl looked up at him, "Is that the girl that daddy shouted at you in front of?"

"It is", the teen confirmed flatly.

Judith looked back at the necklace, "I think she'll like it… but you should put it in a pretty box like the ones daddy gives mama…"

Carl's shoulders fell, "I'm not rich, Judy"

"Neither am I", Rick scoffed as he took a seat in the row of chairs by the window.

Michonne wore a warm smile as she joined him, loving to watch her family interact with each other, "It's very cute, Carl. I'm sure she'll love it"

The teen looked pleased as he put it back in the bag.

"You alright?", Rick asked, resting his hand on her knee once she crossed her legs.

"Yeah", She placed her hand on top of his, "You?"

He sighed, tugging his baseball hat down further with his free hand, "I wanna take a nap or somethan'-"

"We should be boarding in the new thirty minutes. You can nap on the flight"

He groaned, sinking lower into his chair.

"Daddy, can I sit next to Carl and Gerald on the plane?", Judith requested sweetly.

"You don't wanna sit with me and your mama?"

The little girl's eyes roamed around as she thought of a way to let him down gently.

"Of course you can sweetie", Michonne glanced at Rick.

Judith beamed, turning back to the window.

"You want me all to yourself, huh?", Rick grinned as he whispered to her, but to her horror, he wasn't quite enough, as Carl looked at them both with a mortified expression from the seat beside his father.

"Gross!", He shuddered, pulling his hood up and taking out his phone.

Rick snickered, giving Michonne's knee a little squeeze.

She glanced behind her, looking for the rest of her family, "Where is everyone?"

Rick mimicked her, "Mom and Sharon went to the bathroom. I think your dad might be waiting for them… and there's Jeffrey and Gerald"

Her brother in law and nephew strolled towards them, both looking as tired as she felt. Jeffrey sat beside her, while Gerald joined Carl.

"That our plane?", the man asked, resting his elbows on his knees as he leaned forward.

"It is", She answered, taking in his bothered state, "What's wrong?"

He sighed, pulling his cap down, the same way Rick had just done moments before, "Grimes men don't like flying. At all"

Michonne frowned, turning her head to look at Rick, "You're not afraid of flying?"

"Not afraid. Just don't like it", Rick corrected.

Her mouth fell agape, surprised to learn such a thing about him after all these years, "What? Why- how am I just learning this?"

Her husband shrugged, "It never came up"

Her eyes widened, " _Just_ last week I asked you to tell me a secret-"

"It's not a secret though. And we haven't flown anywhere for me to have to talk about it either"

She rolled her eyes as she crossed her arms, "To think I had to get you in front of a plane to find this out"

"Stop it".

Jeffrey bit his lip as he tried not to smile, swiftly changing the subject, "Oh, Daryl told me that y'all saw Mrs Hanson?"

Michonne's eyes had barely settled before they rolled right back over to Rick.

He slowly nodded, keeping his gaze straight ahead, "Yeah. She stopped by the department…"

"She moved back to town, huh? Ain't that nice. She was a great teacher"

"Yeah, she was"

Michonne stared at the side of Rick's head, while he continued to avoid her gaze, "Mrs Hanson? She was your high school teacher right?"

His eyes finally slid over to her, "Yeah"

"You saw her? How is she? I would have _loved_ to have met her?"

"Ain't she planning a reunion or somethan'? That's what Daryl said", Michonne loved that Jeffrey volunteered the information that her husband didn't.

Michonne eyebrows shot up, "Oh! Well isn't that nice?"

"Stop it", Rick muttered under his breath in a biting tone.

"We definitely have to go to that. I would absolutely love to meet the woman that kept Rick so captivated as a teen", She gave him one of her teasing smiles, "If only she knew how much of an influence she had on you"

Rick pursed his lips in annoyance as he glared at her.

She looked away innocently, though she meant every word she said. She did want to see the woman that Rick used to lust over when he was a teen, as she was always so interested in his life before her. Also, she wanted to finally see the woman who spawned his favourite fantasy.

While Michonne hated hearing key information from anyone else but Rick, she wasn't going to let it sour her mood. She was actually looking forward to the vacation, and she couldn't wait to have five whole days of nothing but relaxation. After such an emotional ending to her wedding night, she wanted nothing more than to clear her mind, and enjoy herself with her family.

…

The ship was a grand one, with beautiful decor throughout. Michonne was in awe, and like the rest of her family, she wanted to go and explore it all, but instead she found herself going head to head with Rick when they were due to leave their suite.

Ha hadn't said anything to her, but she knew what he was thinking when his eyes trailed up and down the white, strapless dress she wore. He raised an eyebrow at her in a questioning manner, and so she crossed her arms, her shoulders rolled back, and her lips poised to shoot down any argument he had.

"I can see your nipples from all the way over here"

She bit the inside of her cheek to stop herself from smiling. She wished he didn't make her laugh the way he did, "I haven't put a bra on yet"

"So you're really wearing that dress?", his expression was an unimpressed one.

She tilted her head at him, "What's wrong with it?"

"It looks tight-"

"Why don't you just say that you don't like it?"

"Because I don't dislike it. Far from it actually. I already know what effect it's having on me so I can only imagine that once we leave this room, I won't be the only one looking"

She shrugged, "There's probably going to be women and men walking around in less. It's hot and this is light and I'm comfortable"

"You should be comfortable. It fits like a second skin-"

"Are you done?", She rolled her eyes as she stepped into the bedroom, "We need to leave. I want to see what this 'kids club' is"

"I'm waiting on you"

She grabbed her strapless bra from the bed and put it on in record speed. She pulled her hair up into a ponytail, then grabbed her purse before joining Rick in the living area. She stopped to inspect his outfit choice, which was really her outfit choice for him. He wore a black and white, striped pair of long shorts, with a white t-shirt and white shoes, and she was proud of herself for getting him out of his usual attire.

"I can't even remember the last time I saw your ankles", She teased, but her smile quickly faded, "Take the cap off-"

"No. I like it", He frowned as he opened the front door, tugging his black cap further down.

"I can't stand you", she snarled, walking out into the cabin hallway.

"Oh, there you both are!"

Susan and Donald were already stood with Carl and Judith, while Sharon was a little further away, with her own family. Lauren looked sheepish, planted between her parents, and Michonne couldn't help but dislike the way the girl's father was nearly glaring at Carl.

Her eyes slid over to Rick, who seemed to have already picked up on the unwelcoming look, as he muttered to her, "I'm watching him".

"We all ready?", Jeffrey asked as he stepped out of his room with Gerald in tow.

"We're just getting everyone together", Michonne's father answered, taking hold of Judith's hand, "You ready to look around honey?"

"I'm hungry", Judith announced, ignoring her grandfather's question.

"Yeah me too", Carl piped, looking to Michonne.

"Are we getting something to eat?", Gerald's eyes lit up, darting at all the adults.

Michonne ignored Rick's groan from beside her, "What time are they serving lunch?"

"In about an hour if I remember correctly", Her father glanced down at his watch, causing the three youngest of the family to let out an exaggerated moan.

"Well get them some snacks to tide them over", Susan instructed, resting her hand on Carl's back, "My poor grandbabies need to eat"

"Hey everyone!", Sharon approached them, with a warm but cautious smile, "Just want to introduce you all to my daughter, Carolyn, her husband Carter and my granddaughter Lauren"

The group all exchanged brief greetings, and Michonne kept her eyes on Carter the whole time. While she would never get over what had happened with Carl and Lauren, she didn't like to see the man looking at her son in such a way, as Carl had suffered enough at the hands of his own father.

The group began there stroll around the ship, and Michonne found herself creating a barrier between Carl and his girlfriend's parents, making sure the teen walked ahead of her. She was sure Rick was doing the same thing, as he would rest his hand on Carl's shoulder whenever he began to lag behind.

"Well hello there! I'm Vicky, one of the big sisters here at the kids club"

A petite blonde woman appeared in front of them, wearing a bright yellow t-shirt and shorts, her eyes darting all over the members of the group. The kids club was located towards the front of the ship, in a hall that was heavily decorated with a pirate theme.

"We already signed the kids up, from the Parker family?", Donald informed, glancing behind him, at Michonne, "I think all the parents should come take a look at what's going on".

Rick, Michonne and Jeffrey all approached the front desk, while Carter and Carolyn chose to look at the notice board a few feet away.

"We have a teens club too, where we take them to do more age appropriate things which are still fun, like rock-climbing, bowling, ice skating, we have a surfing pool and we also have a disco in the evening, just for the teens. Which is heavily supervised of course", Vicky informed as she handed out brochures to the parents.

"Cool", was all Carl could manage to muster.

"The kids club is similar, but we prefer to do a lot of activities here, such as painting, singing, dancing, we have an indoor jungle gym and soft play area for them, but we do take them swimming, and to the theatre, where we have so many shows just for kids", Vicky looked down at Judith with a wide smile, "Does that sound like something you would like to do, pretty girl?"

Judith nodded, though she looked a little unsure, "Yeah"

"We're going to have lots of fun then aren't we? Then your mommy can come get you at the end of the day and you can tell her all about it!"

"She'd probably tell her dad first", Michonne smirked as she smoothed Judith's hair back.

"Oh sweet! You're a little daddy's girl, huh? And where is your daddy?"

"Right here", Rick issued dryly.

Vicky's gaze landed on Rick, and she frowned for only a second, before realising a little gasp, "Oh! I see it now! The eyes! And this is your son too?"

Carl nodded as if it was a question he'd heard many times before.

"Beautiful family!", The woman recovered, beaming at them with energy that Michonne didn't care for.

"How's it going over here?"

A blonde male stepped through the glass doors that led to the club and joined them by the front desk.

"This is Ryan, one of the big brothers here at the club, and also my actual brother", Vicky introduced, "This is the Parker group, and we have four members of the kids club here"

"Great to meet you all", Ryan smiled, his eyes scanning across the faces, but coming to an abrupt halt when he saw Michonne, "So I can give you a tour of the facilities if you're done here?"

"Sure. Lead the way", Rick's tone was a familiar one. It was one he used when he appeared to be friendly, but something about the way he didn't blink, made a person feel uneasy.

She gave Rick a warning look as the group followed Ryan back through the glass doors. Her husband gave her an innocent smile in return, resting his hand on her back as they trolled behind the others.

She hissed at him, "Don't be a jackass-"

"I can't promise that".


	37. Chapter 37

**Chapter 37:**

 _'God dammit, Michonne'_

"Why do we have to get all dressed up for dinner?"

Rick glanced at his son as they made their way to the dining room at the bottom of the ship, "I don't know son, we just do"

Carl looked uncomfortable in his shirt, and Rick could empathise with him, as he found it unnecessary to dress up also.

"Why do women take so long to get ready?", Gerald queried with a frown.

"They just do, and if you want to live a long and peaceful life, don't ever ask that question again", Jeffrey sniggered as he judged Rick.

"You got that right", Rick sighed, as the four of them entered the lavish hall.

They were greeted by an older male in a black tuxedo, who proceeded to take their details before leading them over to their table. Rick hated to be in situations like this, and it didn't help that his brother, son and nephew didn't like it either. They all sat fussing with their shirt collars, looking around aimlessly and watching other diners immerse themselves in the fine experience.

"...I heard mom last night"

Rick glanced at his son, then looked back at him with wide eyes when he realised what he had said to him, "What?"

Carl nodded his gaze on one of the many plates in front of him, "I needed the bathroom… and heard her shouting…"

Rick scratched his brow with his thumb, his mouth opening and closing as he struggled to form a sentence.

"I think I get why she's upset… but I think she's being really hard on herself…", Carl looked at him with concerned eyes.

He cleared his throat, "She is. But... trying to get her to see that isn't easy at all"

His son nodded, "So what do we do?"

"...We just have to be there for her… take it all one step at a time", Rick span his wedding band with his thumb as he thought about it, "We'll figure it out"

Carl didn't seem bought by his father's plan of action, but he continued to nod, "Alright".

Watching his son worry about his mother was something that always left Rick beaming with pride. He smiled at the teen, resting his hand on his shoulder, "Sometimes I wonder if you're just too good to be true, son"

"Oh my god, dad", Carl snorted, "Not in public"

Rick's smile fell.

"Daddy! Look at my dress!"

Judith ran up to him at the table, wearing a white dress that had a flowing skirt, which she happily spun around in, "Ain't it pretty?"

"You look absolutely beautiful", Rick grinned, "Like a little ballerina"

"I'm not little anymore", She corrected as she tilted her head at him.

He almost gasped in shock, "You will always be my little girl"

Judith giggled, "I know, Daddy... Can I sit next to you and Carl?"

"Of course you can", Rick moved over a seat, allowing his daughter to sit between he and his son.

Lauren and her parents took their seats on the other side of the large circular table, while Sharon and Donald sat next to them. Michonne arrived with his mother, and Rick tried to appreciate his wife's dress discreetly, but he couldn't take his eyes off her.

"God, I'm so hungry", She huffed, picking up the menu from the table.

"So am I", Rick made sure to use a tone that would catch her attention.

Her eyes crept over to him, and she raised an eyebrow, "Don't."

He raised an eyebrow back at her as his gaze fell to the curve in her back, which was exposed in the black dress she wore.

"Stop it", She warned again.

"I haven't done anythan'...", He shrugged, "Yet."

She looked away from him, crossing her legs beneath the table, and Rick had to resist her for the time being.

"So what do you all think so far?", Donald asked as he looked around the table, holding hands with Sharon.

"It's great", Jeffrey answered first, "I don't think any of us will be able to thank you enough"

"It's true. You didn't have to do this…", Rick began, almost flinching as Michonne tapped his leg under the table, "But we appreciate it. And we're touched that you would wanna do somethan' like this for all of us"

"I agree with everythan' my boys said", Susan chimed, "Thank you both so much"

Donald and Sharon smiled at each other for a brief moment before looking around the table at their family, Donald speaking again, "You're all welcome. We're just glad that we can share this with our families, and we feel so blessed to have found each other"

Rick glanced at Michonne, who was hiding behind her glass of water. He rested his hand on her thigh, hoping that her father's declaration wasn't too much for her to hear.

"We are going to have a great week", Donald finished off, and everyone nodded in agreement.

"I need a whiskey or somethan'...", Rick muttered to himself as he looked over the drinks menu.

"What's whiskey?", Judith probed, her little brows knitting together.

"It's a special drink for daddies", He lied, earning him a nudge from Michonne.

"And Uncle's", Jeffrey added with a chuckle.

"So Rick", Sharon called, "Carolyn just started out at their local police force as a deputy. Maybe you can give her some helpful tips?"

Rick wished he had the drink even sooner, "Oh really?"

Carolyn nodded, putting down her glass of water, "Yeah. It was always something I was interested in so I finally took the dive"

He slowly nodded, "Yeah, well it's not always like it is in the movies… it can be quiet for a long time, then next thang you know-"

"Someone blows up their house and you end up in hospital, or you arrest a couple of creeps for secretly recording you and your family, or your chasing up a narcotics case and you get shot", Michonne gave an innocent smile once she finished listing off Rick's recent experiences, "But otherwise it's really quiet. Right Rick?"

He inhaled until his lungs were at full capacity, "Yeah. That's right"

"I remember a house was blown up in Kings county!", Carolyn's eyes were wide with interest, "You dealt with that?"

"Uh, yeah. Fortunately, nobody was hurt-"

"Pete Anderson", Michonne reminded.

"Fortunately, nobody _died_ ", Rick corrected.

"And that narcotics case? Did you get the guy that shot you?", Carolyn questioned.

Rick snarled at the memory, "Yeah, his court case is coming up"

"Oh wow. It sounds more like the movies than you think", She joked, "I was working as a secretary at Carters construction firm and the most exciting thing to happen there was if they got an order messed up!"

"Hey, it may not be exciting but it's still stressful", Carl rebutted, picking up the pitcher of water from the table.

Carolyn waved her hand at him and rolled eyes, "Please, tell me more"

…

"Easy there, Grimes".

Rick grinned at Michonne as he pulled his shirt off, throwing it over his shoulder, "You know what's happening now?"

She stared at him with both hands on her hips, "You're drunk"

"Nope", He shook his head, and almost regretted doing such a thing as it made him dizzy, "Now, we consummate our marriage"

She rolled her eyes at him, pulling her arms out of the sleeves of her dress, "Yeah, we'll see how well that works out"

He unbuttoned his pants, "You think I can't perform like this?"

She smirked, "We'll see"

"Don't challenge me, Michonne"

She tilted her head at him, "I'm challenging you"

His eyebrows shot up, "Really?"

"You heard me, Grimes"

"It's Mr Husband Grimes to you", He pointed a wobbly finger at her.

She threw her head back as she cackled, " _Mr Husband Grimes_? Really?"

"You heard me", He stepped out of his pants and his boxers, and stood with both hands at his sides as he presented his erection to her, "You ready for this?"

She looked over her shoulder at him, and cackled again, "Oh God"

"Stop all that laughing and come here"

She stepped out of her dress, and folded her arms over her chest as she continued to giggle at him.

Rick frowned at her, "You were naked under your dress this whole time?"

She shrugged, her eyes sailing around the room, "Maybe…"

Rick's shaft throbbed at the thought, "I've never been so mad and happy at the same time"

She covered her mouth as she chuckled at him, "Let's make this interesting"

"Go on…", He raised an eyebrow at her.

"Wherever you catch me is where I'll let you-"

Michonne had barely finished her sentence when she squealed, running out the bedroom, as Rick already was half way around the bed. She sprinted around the breakfast table, barely able to speak as she was in a fit of giggles.

"Rick!... Wait!"

"You better get over here", He grinned from the other side of the table, "I know exactly where I want you"

"Okay, okay…", She appeared to be surrendering, but Rick knew better. She tried to run back towards the bedroom but he was quicker, even in his inebriated state, and he scooped her off the floor by her waist, "Fine! You got me!"

He carried her back to the table, "Don't forget you challenged me"

"Oh boy", She muttered as he sat her down on the surface.

"Hold on", He breathed, hooking his hand at the back of her knee, "Now let's just put this here…"

He aligned himself at her entrance, and slowly pushed the tip in. He then wrapped his hand around her waist and pulled her towards him.

"What are you-"

"You better hold on".

She sighed, lacing one arm around his neck, while the other stayed flat on the table. He thrust within her, and her head rolled back, exposing her neck to him.

"Look at me", He ordered, rocking his hips again to her crotch.

Her head tipped forward and she rested her forehead against his.

"You've been a bad girl", He whispered, his lips brushing against hers, "Haven't you?"

"Yeah", She moaned sensually, causing Rick to involuntarily thrust into her again. A high pitched cry left her and he thrust a third time. He was genuinely hoping to start off slow, but his body had other ideas.

"You like that, huh?", He pumped her, deciding to stick with the pace.

"Oh god, yes!", her nails dug into his shoulder.

He lifted her off the table, allowing him sink even deeper into her. A primal growl left him as he drove in and out of her, and she wrapped both arms around his shoulders to hold on.

"Yes Daddy! Just like that!", She howled, her head rolling back again.

Rick groaned, pulling out of her completely with great sorrow, "God dammit, Michonne"

"What? Why did you stop?", She panted, her head snapping back up.

"I'm trying to make this last, so you need to save all that for the end", He carried her to the bedroom, his chest heaving.

She tittered, giving him a kiss on the cheek as she purred, "Sorry"

Her voice sent a shiver up his spine. He climbed on the bed, and laid on his back, making her straddle him. He brought his knees up, and planted his feet flat on the bed.

She huffed, resting her hand on his chest as she straightened up, slipping herself right back on his length, "You're tired already?"

He raised an eyebrow at her. She began to bounce on him slowly, and his eyes rolled back. He cursed in his mind, trying to find the willpower to continue on. He bit his lip, placing his hands firmly on her hips to stop her.

"Rick…"

He slammed into her, causing her to suck air between her teeth, "This is still my round"

He picked up where he had left off, driving in and out her with pure determination, holding her in place above him. Michonne bit her lips together in an effort to keep quiet but a little whimpers still left her. He only slowed his movements so he could pull her down to lay on top of him.

He pressed his lips against hers as he started to move again, leading her to moan into the kiss. He waited until she lost herself in the mood, before moving his hand further up her thigh. He lubricated his fingers with her passion, and waited until he was about to thrust inside her again to pop the tip of his middle finger in her ass.

"Rick!", She looked down at him with wide eyes, "What is your-"

He knew it was a risky move to do it again, but he slipped his ring finger in too. When both fingers were knuckle deep, He returned to the previous pace, and her back arched as new sounds left her mouth. He had never heard her cry in such desperation, resting on her forearms on either side of his head. He saw the opportunity to drive her insane and he took it, latching on to her nipple with his mouth.

"Oh god! Yes, daddy! Teach this bad girl a lesson!"

Rick was glad when only a matter of seconds later she tightened around his fingers and his shaft, her legs quivering on either side of his torso. He wasn't going to last any further either. She cried out, and Rick's was soon drenched from orgasm. He was sure his load shot into her with the same amount of force as a fire hose.

Neither of them moved for quite some time, and he was sure it was because they couldn't. Rick didn't even dare to open his eyes, he was more than happy to just fall asleep with her on top of him.

"And you challenged me-"

"Quiet".

…

"You excited for the kids club, Judy?", Jeffrey quizzed the little girl, who was sat next to him drinking her apple juice.

She nodded, "Yep. The lady said we get to go swimming today"

"Oh, so we'll see you there"

"Are you going swimming too?"

"Nah, us Grimes men don't like swimming"

Michonne threw her hands up in the air as she looked at Rick with wide eyes. The two of them were sat across from his brother and Daughter at the breakfast table, as the other group members had already came down earlier.

Rick sighed, resting his cup of orange juice back on the coaster, "When have we ever gone swimming for me to have to tell you that?"

"It's like I don't even know _you_ ", She hissed, her eyes narrowed at him.

Carl snickered beside his mother, "It's funny because I've never cared for swimming either"

"Me neither", Gerald piped up, wiping his mouth with a napkin.

"Well that's fine. Us Parker girls will have the pool all to ourselves", Michonne grinned at Judith, and the little girl nodded in agreement.

"My daughter's a Grimes, and so are you", Rick reminded sternly.

She snarled at him, "On paper"

"And in every other sense"

She rolled her eyes at him, "Come on, let's go get dressed"

It dawned on Rick that there would be a list of things that he would be uninterested in doing, but Michonne would love to do. He was hoping they wouldn't argue during this trip, but he could foresee many disagreements, all in the near future.

The first starting with her choice of bathing suit. Rick didn't consider himself a prude, and he didn't usually care about Michonne's choice of outfit, as he thought she looked sensational in absolutely anything she wore. He was struggling, however, with the outfits she had picked so far in the vacation.

"Michonne, where the hell is the rest of that?"

She rolled her eyes at him as she pulled on a sheer tunic dress, "It's a bikini, Rick"

"I don't care what it is, why the hell is it so small? I can almost see that magic city that I love to visit-"

Laughter burst from her lips, before she put her hands on her hips, and tilted her head at him, "Stop that! What are you afraid of?"

He groaned, "I don't want some little punk drooling all over you. That's my job"

She sighed, stepping over to him, "Can you relax please? When do I ever get to wear a bikini? Or even a swimsuit?"

He pursed his lips as he looked down at her, "Do you have a swim suit?"

Her brow dropped into a straight line, "I'm wearing this. That's it"

She stepped past him, and his eyes followed her, trailing down her back and stopping at her bikini bottoms, "I'm gonna have to walk behind you-"

"I bet you are!"

They left their suite and met up with the rest of their group in the cabins hallway. His eyes focused on Carter whenever he noticed the man staring at his son. He imagined that he wasn't happy to be around Carl for the trip, and Rick could almost sympathise with him, but Carl was still his son, and he wouldn't allow anyone to intimidate him.

"Daddy, are you going to come swimming with me?", Judith asked as they began their walk to the kids club.

Rick inwardly groaned, "I don't really like swimming sweetie"

Her eyes pleaded with him, "Please?"

He wished he didn't adore the little girl so much that he folded like a napkin when it came to pleasing her, "Alright, we'll go swimming sweetie"

A wide smile spread across her face, "Yes!"

"You never took me swimming", Carl called back over his shoulder.

"Well today's your lucky day, I'm killing two birds with one stone", Rick countered, "You want me to put you on my shoulders too?"

Carl gave him his best unimpressed expression, which almost rivalled Michonne's.

Rick gave his son a teasing grin, "Don't worry, I'll only embarrass you around the three of us this week"

"Me too", Michonne giggled.

Carl shook his head at his parents, "I'll just remember this for the therapy sessions I'm going to need"

"That's fine, just don't go to a guy named Aaron. He doesn't do refunds"

Michonne threw her head back as she cackled, and nothing made Rick happier than to make her laugh that way.

They arrived at the Kids Club entrance, and Rick's good mood was put on the back burner when he saw Ryan at the front desk. The young man only seemed to have eyes Michonne during their little tour the previous day, and naturally, Rick didn't like that at all.

"How are you all doing today?", Ryan greeted with a smile, "I'm just need all the parents to sign the register to say that you dropped off the kids and then they can go right on in; the teenagers meet in the blue meeting room and I'll be taking little Judith to the green room"

Michonne stepped forward to sign the clipboard, while Rick picked up his daughter, "You gonna be a good girl, aren't you?"

She nodded, "Yep! No eye rolling…"

He chuckled at her, "We have to remind mama and Carl about that, don't we?"

"She is precious", Ryan commented as he watched the exchange.

Rick's bared his teeth at the man, "She is."

"Rick, put her down and let her go", Michonne issued after giving Judith a kiss, "Go have fun sweetie"

Rick did as he was told, "Remember, Daddy's not far, so if you're not happy-"

"Then call the police", Judith finished proudly.

"You can't do that here, but you can tell Ryan...", Rick sent the man a warning glance, "And I'll be right over, okay?"

"Okie doke"

He turned to Carl, "The same goes for you. We're not far if you have a problem... And remember, you better behave yourself-"

"No sneaking around", Michonne hissed as she interrupted Rick, "I know you're happy that Lauren's here but that doesn't mean you lose mind-"

"Cause I will help you find it", Rick warned in a dangerously low tone.

Carl's mouth fell open as his eyes darted back and forth between his parents, "Okay?"

"Good. Enjoy yourself, son", He patted the teen on his back.

"Bye, honey", Michonne sang as she kissed his cheek.

Rick held his arm out for his wife, and she took hold of it, "Come on, let's run".

She chortled at him, "Stop it"

"I'm just getting started".


	38. Chapter 38

**Chapter 38:**

 _'Not. Funny'_

"You having fun in there, Michael Phelps?"

Michonne glowered at Rick as she emerged from the pool, squeezing all the water from her dreads, "Can you pass me that towel please?"

"I'd be more than happy to", He reached behind him and grabbed the white towel off the back of his lounge chair.

She took it from him and put it on the chair beside his before sitting down, "You're really not getting in the water?"

"When my little girl gets here I will. If I'm going in then I'm only going in once and that's it", He answered dryly, flicking through a brochure, "You want to know somethan'?"

"Oh? More secrets? Let me guess, you have a sixth toe you want to tell me about now?", She snickered.

He scowled at her, "No. I was gonna say that I've noticed that on every menu, even the room service one up in our room, they don't list any prices"

She squinted at him, "Because all meals are included in the-"

"Breakfast, lunch and dinner are the three meals that are covered, and that's fine. But if we got to the bar any other time, or you get hungry up in the room one night and order room service, then we don't have a damn clue how much it's going to cost-"

"We won't order from room service then. And you won't go to the bar"

"We're fine, it's those two garbage cans that we have to worry about"

She stopped drying her legs to frown at him.

"Carl and Gerald", He explained, "They eat anythan' and you know that they eat anythan'-"

"Did you forget about Judith? She's got a little appetite too-"

"That's different, she's small for her age so she needs to eat to catch up to the other kids"

Michonne's mouth fell open, "You sound just like your mother"

He rolled his eyes as he sat forward on the chair, turning to face her, "Just look at this. They serve twenty eight day matured salt aged sirloin steak-"

"Really? Is that for dinner?", Her eyes lit up as she leaned forward to look at the menu.

"How much do you think that costs, Michonne? Because I have a feeling it definitely ain't cheap-"

"Well if they have it at dinner, then we order it at dinner, otherwise, we don't have it. Simple. But I do want it, so I hope they have it"

"My point is that they think we're rich-"

"Rick, please", She sighed, "We won't order anything, okay? Even when we reach the next port, we won't buy anything, we'll just look around and take pictures beside the things we want."

He stared at her, "You're not funny"

She giggled, "Yes I am"

"You're not", He began to smile, though she could see he didn't want to.

"I'm feeling so relaxed here and I want you to too", She pleaded, resting her hand on his knee.

He immediately softened, rubbing her arm in return, "I'm so glad to hear that. I don't want you to worry about anythan', that's what I'm here for. You just enjoy yourself-"

"No, we enjoy ourselves together. That's how this works", She insisted, "You said we're going through this together, and I'm feeling good right now and I want you to feel the same-"

"I am", He raised his hands in surrender, "I really am. If you're feeling good then I'm at my happiest"

She smiled at his words, "Me too"

"...We're not ordering any steak though-"

"If I want steak, I'm having steak", She pulled her hand away from him.

"You can wait until we get home to have steak-"

"I don't want that land steak. I want this _boat_ _steak_ "

He threw his head back as he chuckled at her, throwing his hands up again, "Fine. Whatever you want"

She grinned, "I can have my steak?"

"You can have as many as you want", He sighed happily, resting both his hands on her knees, "We can fall behind on a few car payments, it's fine"

She dropped her head on his shoulder as she laughed at him, and he gave her a little soft kiss on her cheek.

"Oh my god!"

Michonne ignored Rick's quiet groan, and lifted her head to see Carl stood next to his father's deck chair, next to Lauren and Gerald, all three in their swimwear.

"What are you doing here?", Rick frowned at his son.

"We're all coming to the pool. Judith's group is just getting changed", Carl explained.

"Well get in the pool then", Rick tipped his head towards the swimming area.

"Yeah, come on", Lauren urged as she tugged Carl's arm.

"Okay", A goofy smile formed on Carl's face for a second, "Come on, Gerald"

Gerald sighed as he shook his head, and the three of them made their way over to the water slide.

"Did you see that? Did you see how he turned to mush when she looked at him?", Michonne smacked Rick on the knee, "She has got him wrapped around her little finger"

He knitted his brow at her, "I have no idea what that must be like"

Her eyes crept over to him, "Stop that"

"Daddy!"

Judith came bolting over to her father in her leopard print swimsuit with pink lining, and Michonne quickly retrieved her phone to take a picture of her daughter.

"What the-", Rick's head jerked back as he looked at the little girl's swimwear, "You bought this for her?"

"No, Andrea did", Michonne answered with a smile as she took a picture, "You look adorable Judy"

"She couldn't find her a more age appropriate-"

"Are we going in the pool now daddy?", Judith looked at him with urgency.

He huffed, pulling off his cap, "Yeah, go on, I'm coming"

"Yes!", Judith punched the air, turning to the pool.

Rick stood up and pulled his t-shirt off, dropping it back on the deck chair. Seeing her husband topless wasn't anything remotely new to Michonne, and he often slept without one, but something about seeing his slender, but buff body in the sun made her knees weak.

She watched him take their daughter over to the pool, and she continued to snap pictures of her family.

"Mom, you said you were going to the casino to look-"

"I did look! But I wanted to try out a few of those machines is all!"

Jeffrey and Susan approached Michonne at the chairs, taking a seat on Rick's now vacant area. Susan fumed, "I am nearly sixty years old, if I want to go into a casino-"

"You lost a hundred dollars in twenty minutes!", Jeffrey looked at her with nothing but disbelief.

"And I was going to get it back! You messed up my flow!"

Michonne's mouth fell agape, "You spent a hundred dollars in the casino Susan?"

"Oh, don't look at me like that young lady, I _know_ how much your shoes cost", Susan countered with a pointed look. Michonne's mouth snapped shut as she turned back to face the pool.

"Grandma! Look!", Judith called, perched on her father's shoulders.

"Oh look! I see you my little angel!", Susan grinned, "Where's Carl and Gerald?"

"Gerald's going back up on that slide again… can't see Carl?", Jeffrey's head moved around as he tried to search for his nephew.

Michonne perked up, looking around the area, and she couldn't see him either, or Lauren. She nearly gasped, "He better not have snuck off-"

"Let me ask Rick-"

"No!", She hissed, and both her brother and mother in law, jumped back, "Let me find him first, if Rick finds out he disappeared then he'll throw him overboard and tell him to swim home"

Susan seemed to think about the possibility, them shook her head with a sigh, "Go on, go look for him, we'll keep an eye out"

Michonne pulled on her tunic dress and slipped back into her flip flops.

"Where you going?", Rick questioned from the pool as she tried to walk past them casually.

"To get a bottle of water, you want one?", She lied.

"How much is the water?"

She rolled her eyes at him, "We'll share one"

"Thank you"

She power walked along the deck, heading towards the other swimming pool, hoping her son and his girlfriend had just decided to explore the ship, and not each other. Again.

She was almost at the flight of stairs that led to the lower level, when she saw them walking up towards her, laughing, like they didn't have a care in the world, "Hey! Where the hell did you go!?"

Both teens eyes widened, and they held up the bottles of Coke in their hands, with Carl speaking first, "To get drinks?"

Michonne narrowed her eyes at him, "Just drinks?"

Lauren held hers up again and nodded.

She exhaled, "Ask someone next time! Don't just disappear-"

"We told Gerald-"

"He's not an adult, okay? So no sneaking off! Unless you want your father to make you re-tile the roof when we get home?!"

Carl shook his head, "We're sorry, we'll ask next time, promise"

"Good. Now, come on. And hide those drinks"

"Yes, mom".

…

"Judith was a dream, I can't wait to have her back tomorrow", Ryan grinned at Michonne from behind the desk in the kids club, while she sighed them all out of the session.

"I know she probably had a great time", She smiled, placing the pen down on the clipboard when she was done, "I think both my kids did"

"The older kids are usually a bit harder to please, but we make sure to keep them busy"

"That's exactly what they need"

He tilted his head as he looked at her with emerald green eyes, "You look too young to have a teenager?"

She snorted, "I wish-"

"No honestly, there's such a youthfulness to your smile, and your skin is absolutely glowing…"

Michonne stared at the man for a few seconds, "Thank you very much, that's very sweet of you. I just need to get my kids-"

He rested his hand on top of hers on the desk before she could move away, "I'm sorry if I crossed any boundaries but, I just want you to know that I think you're beautiful"

She slid her hand out from beneath his, "Thank you. My _husband_ thinks the same."

Ryan bowed his head, "I apologise. Your married and your husband is a great man, I will respect that-"

"Thank you Ryan. Can I have my children and my nephew now?"

"Yes of course", He nodded, making his way to the glass doors.

Michonne threw her hands up in the air once the man was out of sight. While it was flattering to receive such compliments from the young man, she knew Rick wouldn't think so lightly of it all.

"What's wrong with you?"

Rick's voice behind her almost made her jump, and she spun around to see his brother and mother were right behind him, "Nothing, just waiting on the kids. I signed Gerald out too"

"Thanks", Jeffrey gave her a single nod of his head as he joined her at the desk.

"Aren't Lauren's parents back on board the ship yet?", Michonne frowned as she looked to Rick, "She's going to be here by herself?"

"Your dad said they'd be back before dinner?", Rick glanced at his watch.

"Where is it we are now?", Susan queried, adjusting her wicker bag on her shoulder.

"Turks and Caicos. Tomorrow it's the Dominican Republic, then the Bahamas", Michonne listed, turning back to the desk when she heard the door open. Carl, Judith and Gerald appeared, ahead of Ryan, who plastered a smile on his face.

"You guys ready?", Rick quizzed as Judith ran up and took his hand.

"I'm hungry", She announced.

"Yeah me-", Carl began.

"I know, I know, come on, we're going to go change for dinner okay", Michonne informed.

"Bye Ryan!", Everyone called as they began to leave the foyer.

"See you tomorrow guys!", He waved, getting back behind the desk, "Enjoy your evening!"

Michonne glanced over her shoulder to thank him, but she immediately wished she didn't, as Ryan was gazing after her, winking when her eyes caught his. Her head whipped back around at lightning speed, and she picked up her pace as she stepped through the entrance doors. It was in that moment that she decided never to make eye contact, or any kind of contact at all, with the man again.

"Where's Lauren's parents? Are they coming?", Carl asked her as they walked along the deck.

"They should be, it probably takes a while for them to get on the ship", She responded faintly, her mind reeling from her encounter with Ryan.

"You should probably give your dad a call", Rick suggested from behind her.

"Okay… I will", She nodded.

When they arrived at their suite, Rick brought Judith in to their room so Michonne could help her get ready. After getting hardly any answer from her father, she decided to leave him a voice message as well as a text message to let him know that they were going to dinner.

"Am I wearing the dress Aunt Drea got me?", Judith played with the hem of her t-shirt as Michonne wrapped her dark brown curls into a sleek bun.

"Let me see it first", Rick ordered softly, "That woman is so inappropriate-"

"It's just a little black dress with a puffball skirt", Michonne informed, slipping her daughter's headband on.

"Alright", Rick sighed, buttoning the cuffs of his black shirt.

"Let's get your dress on"

"Daddy has to leave", Judith tilted her head back to look at her mother.

"I'm going, I'm going", Rick grabbed his suit jacket off the bed before leaving the room, still fussing with his cuffs.

Michonne snickered at him.

She helped her daughter dress, before slipping in to a white, spaghetti strap gown. She knew none of the Grimes men enjoyed dressing up for dinner but Michonne was in her element, and she loved seeing her family in their best clothes, which was usually something she picked for them.

They stepped out their suite when they were groomed to perfection, where Susan, Jeffrey, Carl and Gerald were already waiting, and Michonne breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Her father and Sharon power walking down the hall, with Carter and Carolyn behind them, followed by Lauren.

"We're going to get dressed, you go down!", Her father called to her.

"Alright!", Rick called back, resting his hand on Michonne's lower back, "Wonder what took them so long"

She gave a little shrug, "Probably shopping… which reminds me-"

"No."

She glared up at him, "You don't even know what I was going to say-"

"Was it about money?"

She rolled her eyes, "Yes it was, but I was going to say we need to remember to get everyone souvenirs"

"Oh, yeah", He nodded, "Daryl asked for cigars or somethan' like that"

"Well get him some…", her eyes trailed back in front of them, "And I wanted say that I booked us a couple's massage"

His face pinched in annoyance, "What? No. No. I don't want anyone rubbing on me like that. In fact, I don't even think I want anyone rubbing on you like that either-"

"They give us facials, and a massage and then they have a steam room-"

"Take my mom with you. I'm not doing that"

She groaned as she smacked his hand off her hip, "Oh, get off of me"

"Stop that", He warned as he held her again, "You know I don't like anythan' even remotely like that, so why would you-"

"Did you think I liked sleeping out in the wilderness? Getting chased by a bear, and a snake, then attacked by a squirrel?"

He burst out laughing, his hold on her tightening, "None of those things happened-"

"They all happened! And how would you know anyway? You were too busy laughing at me to protect me-"

"I'm sorry I didn't protect you from the squirrel, alright?", He sniggered as he nuzzled his nose against her cheek, "I obviously didn't see the tiny boxing gloves he wore when he jumped on you-"

"Not. Funny", She dismissed, though she couldn't help but smile at his joke.

When they arrived in the dinner hall, Michonne found herself feeling a little nauseous when she noticed Ryan at a table, with his sister and a few other 'brothers and sisters' from the kids club. She inwardly groaned, hoping he didn't notice any of her family as they were led to their table.

"Do they do tiny burgers here?", Judith asked Michonne as they took their seats.

"We'll have to check, they probably won't make them tiny, though", Michonne huffed as she pushed her daughters chair in for her.

"They probably do. The more expensive the food is, the smaller it gets", Rick muttered as he waited for Michonne to sit down, before pushing her chair in for her.

"They have steak", Carl announced as he already scanned over the menu.

Michonne excitedly picked up the menu, "They do?"

"We should go out for lunch or somethan' at the next port", Jeffrey suggested, pouring himself a glass of water.

"Do we have to come? We're going to the surf simulator tomorrow and I really wanna try it", Gerald requested from the other side of Rick.

"And there's a disco tomorrow night?", Carl looked to Michonne with pleading eyes.

She glanced over at Rick and Jeffrey. The older brother shrugged, seeming not to mind, while Rick continued to lay his napkin across his lap, as if he heard nothing at all.

She sighed, "Yeah, sure"

Rick's eyes darted up to her and his eyebrow raised.

"Yes!", Gerald cheered quietly as he began to look over his menu.

"We'll talk about this later", She almost whispered to Rick.

"We will", He enforced, barely blinking.

"I know", She bit back.

"For you madam", A waiter appeared at Michonne's side, placing a bottle of champagne in an ice bucket on the table in front of her.

She began to frown, looking up to the man, "I didn't order this?"

The man leaned down to her, speaking quietly, "It is from a secret admirer"

Her face grew hot, "Oh, thank you"

"You are welcome", the man gave her a small smile, then turned and stalked away from the table in his black and white tux.

She stared at the bottle, feeling nauseous for a third time that day, and not daring to look over to Ryan's table.

"Michonne?", Rick's voice was so close to her ear that she flinched.

"Yes?", She choked out, turning to look at him.

"You order that?"

She shook her head, "No. I didn't"

He eyed her suspiciously, "Where did it come from then?"

An uneven breath left her, "Promise me you won't lose your temper?"

His pupils seemed to dilate the moment the words left her mouth, "Tell me"

She nibbled on her lip for a few moments, before mouthing to him, " _Ryan_ "

The expression her husband wore when he had reached that final stage before losing his temper was a scary one. His eyes seemed vacant, his jaw tight, and one eyebrow sat higher than the other. Michonne saw it as his way of attempting to warn people that they had one more chance to escape.

He sat back in his seat, his eyes darkening as they moved around the room like a pinball.

"Rick."

"Whatever happens", He glanced to her face, then her waistline, "Don't try to stop me"


	39. Chapter 39

**Chapter 39:**

 _'I'm not that sorry_ '

"Rick, I swear to God, if you get up and leave this table-"

"Has he said somethan' to you?", He questioned, his eyes still on his target.

When she didn't immediately answer, He averted his glare to her, almost growling, "What did he say?"

"If I tell you, then you don't do anything about it now, deal?", she was near enough on the edge of her seat.

He sniffed as his top lip quivered, "Tell me"

She exhaled through her nose, "He gave me a few compliments when we went to get the kids… then he winked at me when we were leaving"

"When we were leaving? When I was with you? When I was walking beside you?-"

"Yes. I looked back to say good bye or something, and he winked at me"

He pushed his seat back to stand.

"Rick!", Michonne hissed as she grabbed his forearm, "You said-"

"I just wanna have a little talk with him", He insisted calmly.

"Don't you _dare_ lie to me-"

"Michonne. I want you to sit right here-"

"The kids?"

"They'll be fine as long so your right here with them, alright?", He stood up, giving her one last assuring nod before pulling from her hold.

As soon as he began walking over to Ryan's table, he began to undo the second button on his shirt, as a precaution. The young man had his back facing away from Rick, and it was just his luck that the chair beside him was vacant.

Rick turned the chair to face the other man, and took a seat with a slight smile on his face, "How are you, Ryan?"

The blonde man stilled, his face going through a range of emotions before he responded, "Fine? Thank you? How are you-"

"Oh, I'm pissed off Ryan. I'm very, very pissed off", Rick rested his elbow on the table as he sat back in the chair, "Heard you've taken a little liking to my beautiful wife over there?"

Ryan looked over his shoulder, his eyes bouncing around the room, "Uh-"

"Don't do that. You know exactly where she is, so why don't you do me a favour, and just give her a little wave", Rick insisted, his tone laced with threat.

The young man glanced at him, before turning in his chair, raising his hand and giving a pathetic attempt at a wave to Michonne. Her eyes narrowed at the two of them.

"That's it. She is gorgeous, isn't she? The woman is sinless"

"Mr Grimes, what is this-"

Rick's adoring gaze for his wife turned to an icy cold glare as he looked back at the young man, "Don't play with me, Ryan. Now, my wife told me that my presence hasn't stopped you from flirting with her, and I would like to know why that is?"

Ryan blinked continuously for a few moments, before finally catching up with the situation and shaking his head, "I really don't know-"

"Don't. Play. With. Me", Rick warned, rubbing his thumb and index finger together in anticipation of his next move.

He wasn't sure what changed in the young man's demeanour, but he shook his head and thought it wise to snigger at Rick, "You want the truth?"

"That might just save your life, so go ahead"

"Fine". Ryan threw his napkin down on the table, giving a little shrug, "We get these desperate housewives types on these trips all the time. You know the kind; their husbands are old and probably loaded, throwing money at them to go have fun, and those women don't want to lay up with a crustacean at the end of the day, they want some young guy like me to chase them around under their husband's noses. Everybody does it."

Rick couldn't remember a time when he was so offended, "An old crustacean?"

"Look, I thought your wife was interested. The two of you kept bickering on the tour so I thought that was my cue to step in, but obviously I was wrong, so I'll back off. No harm done"

To say that Rick was mortified, was an understatement. The last thing he expected to hear when he stormed over to the man's table, was that he was looking for unhappy married women to sleep with.

"Hello? Sorry this is my seat...Oh wait, you're one of the parents? Uh, Carl's dad? Am I right?…", A red headed young woman appeared, resting her hand on Ryan's shoulder.

Rick began to stand, though he had every intention on dragging Ryan from the hall by the scruff of his neck, "I am. Rick Grimes, nice to meet you"

"You too! I'm Melissa, I'm the manager of the 'kids club' but I work with the older kids", She smiled, holding out her hand.

Rick shook it politely, "Oh that's great"

"Is my Ryan, talking your ear off?", She teased, resting her hand back on the blonde man's broad shoulders, "I always have to tear him away from the parents! Especially the moms! We were actually thinking about starting a 'Mommy talk' club because he always just gets carried away talking about the kids"

An smile spread across Rick's lips, "Oh really?"

Ryan turned his whole body to face the two of them with a slight panic in his eyes, "Well I'll see you-"

"Ryan was just about to tell me about how the two of you met?", Rick lied, slipping his hands in his pants pockets as if he didn't have an ulterior motive.

"Oh we met on the job. I had hired him and we got along so well… that was nearly three years ago', the red haired woman relayed with a warm smile.

"Three years? That's beautiful", He sighed, "So the policy you have here, does it encourage members to sleep with married women? Or is that just Ryan's rule?"

Melissa's smile slowly began to fall, her eyes narrowing with confusion, "What?"

"He was hitting on my wife earlier, and he just proceeded to tell me that that was a regular occurrence here. He sleeps with women who aren't happy in their marriage. Apparently everybody does it"

The man in question slowly stood up, his eyes wide and his jaw hanging. Melissa's face contorted into a horrified one, and she turned to face him, "What?"

"He sent a bottle of champagne over to my table, for my wife. I'm sure you can easily find out where it came from", Rick cocked his head at the man, "No harm done, right?"

Ryan's mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water, his eyes bouncing between Rick and Melissa, "Wait, just wait-"

His sentence came to an abrupt halt when Melissa slapped him across the face, causing an echo through the room. Dinners nearby turned in shock to see what was happening.

Ryan held the side of his face as he gaped at her, before turning his attentions to Rick. His eyes darkened, a low growl left the man.

Rick rolled his shoulders back, sliding off his suit jacket and throwing it on the chair beside him, an evil grin forming on his face, "I'm ready when you are"

Ryan lunged for him, knocking Melissa out the way in the process, and punched Rick in his jaw, sending him stumbling back into a table of diners.

Rick realised that for him to come out as the innocent party in this situation, he'd have to allow Ryan to have his way with him, and so when the young man grabbed him by the throat, he put up a poor attempt to stop him. Ryan punched him twice more, again in the face and once in the stomach, and it was when he went to punch him a third time, did Rick grab his fist with his hand.

"My turn", He rasped, before head butting the man square on the nose.

He was in his element. He didn't allow Ryan to stumble back, instead he grabbed him by his shirt and delivered a right hook that caused the young man's legs to buckle and his eyes to roll back shut. It was disappointing for Rick to see him unconscious so soon, and he allowed him to crumble to the floor in a heap.

Everyone around them watched with wide, frightened eyes as Rick picked up his suit jacket and put it on calmly, while waiters rushed to Ryan's aid.

One particularly nervous looking waiter approached Rick, "Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to-"

"I got it", Jeffrey huffed, appearing at his brothers side, "Come on, let's move"

Rick felt like a young boy as he followed behind Jeffrey, heading towards their table, all while people moved out of their path. He knew he'd have to apologise to everyone for interrupting their dinner, and he didn't mind. He was used to apologising for his temper.

As they approached their table however, Rick saw something that he didn't like. Lauren was stood next to Carl at his seat, engaged in conversation, and he imagined they were discussing the incident as they both wore concerned looks, but that wasn't what bothered him. What bothered Rick was seeing Carter march over to his daughter and send her off in the other direction, before turning to Carl with a finger pointed in his son's face, then poking the teenager's chest. Rick didn't like that at all.

"Hey!", He barked as he stalked past a confused Michonne and his mother, "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Carter dropped his hand and straightened up as Rick invaded his personal space, "I was telling him the same thing I told her, I don't want them hanging around each other-"

"You had to be in his face to do that? You had to put your hands on him to do that?", Rick quizzed angrily, "You think I didn't see that?"

"What happened?", Michonne's hand gripped Rick's arm as she tried to pull him back to face.

"It's seems that Carter thought he had a right to say somethan' to Carl when everyone's back was turned-"

"What?!", Michonne's brow soon furrowed to match Rick's.

"Ask him! I told my daughter the same thing! I don't want them hanging around together and that's final!", Carter ordered with a tone that only seemed to fuel Rick.

"You don't ever touch my son again and you don't ever get that close to my son again", He growled, raising his own finger to the man, "You hear me?"

"Sir, we asked you to leave the hall", Another waiter appeared behind Carter, and he seemed to use him as a barrier to speak to Rick.

"What did he say to you?", Michonne turned back to face Carl, and the teen looked like a deer caught in headlights

"Hey! I just told you what I said!", Carter barked at her.

Michonne's hold fell from Rick's arm, which was equivalent to letting a guard dog off its leash. He didn't even bother to take his jacket off the second time, as he knew with his mother, brother, father in law, and several waiters nearby, he had only a small window of opportunity to hit Carter.

He swung his fist with determination, catching Carter on the bridge of his nose, and the man fell over the chair he was sat in, landing head first on the floor.

"Not again", He heard his brother grunt from somewhere behind him.

"Rick!", Donald snapped, appearing between them, "Stop! Now!"

"Did you hear what he just did?", Rick squinted at his father in law.

"Sir, we asked you to leave and now security are on their way-"

"Alright! He's leaving!", Michonne roared at the waiter, causing the man's head to jerk back. She huffed, softening her voice as she turned to Jeffrey, "Your mother ran out of here with Judith so can you take Carl with you to find her?"

"No problem", Jeffrey nodded, exhaling with a groan.

"Thank you", she sighed, resting her hand back on Rick's arm, "Let's go"

He did as he was told, beginning to lead his wife past the alarmed and confused diners, "Yes ma'am".

…

A light breeze was blowing through the suite, though it was still incredibly warm. Rick Ran both hands over his face as he left the bedroom looking for Michonne. After everything that had happened the night before, he was feeling regretful for the choices he made.

"I'm sorry"

Michonne didn't look back at him as she leaned on the balcony, "Don't be. I'm not"

He joined her, his gaze dropping to the deck below him, "I didn't want to ruin this for us-"

"Ryan was a creep and Carter was a punk. You reacted how I expected you to. Last night I was mad but… today… not so much."

He turned to look at her, "I want you guys to stay-"

"No. Not an option, and you know it-"

"We still have two whole days left-"

"Rick, if it was the other way around and I was getting kicked off the ship for fighting, would you let me leave by myself?"

He raised an eyebrow at her, "That would never happen. You know I'd be fighting with you-"

She smirked, fussing with the diamond bracelet he had bought her for Christmas, "Exactly"

The morning sun was bright, causing them both to squint slightly as they looked at the ocean, "I told my mom to stay. And Jeffrey"

"Good. They deserve this-"

"You do too. I know how much you've enjoyed it out here-"

"I have", She nodded, "And we have another eight hours until we reach the port so I can still get in an activity or two… but when it's time to go, we're going as a family"

He bit his lip as he watched her, "Alright".

There was a knock at their door, leading them both to glance over their shoulders to the sound. Rick sighed as he pushed away from the railing, wondering who it could be at this time.

"Daddy, I'm hungry", Were the first words to leave Judith's mouth when he opened the door. Both of his kids were still in their pyjamas, and both had tousled hair from their rest.

Rick stepped aside to let them in, "You could go down to breakfast-"

"Do we have to?", Carl mumbled, shuffling past his father, "I don't want people staring at us"

He closed the door behind them and ran his hand over his mouth, "Fine. Let's order somethan' up here"

Michonne raised an eyebrow at him as she strolled back into the living area.

"Really?", Carl's face came to life as he sat down on the couch.

"Sure. We can stay up here and just stuff our faces", Rick shrugged.

"Can I have a tiny burger?", Judith's fists balled with excitement.

He smiled at her, "You can have whatever you want, sweetie. Go on, pick"

The little girl ran over to her brother and sat beside him, as he had already picked up the room service booklet off the table. Michonne stepped over to Rick with a confused expression, looking him from head to toe.

"You wanna go shopping?", He offered as he tilted his head at her.

"You know I always want to shopping", She hissed, "But what are you-"

"I messed up. And now I have seven hours left to buy back my families love", He joked, resting his hand on her hip.

"That's not a good thing, Rick-"

"I'm gonna make it up to you all, by letting you do what you all do best. Spending my money"

She narrowed her eyes at him as she crossed her arms, "I want to go to that boutique we saw in the mall-"

"That's fine"

"No limit?"

He raised an eyebrow at her as his head reeled back, "I'm not that sorry"

She bit back a smile, her eyes flashing with amusement, "You better be that sorry-"

"Can I have a milkshake?!", Judith looked to her parents with wide eyes.

"Whatever you-"

"Yes!", She punched the air before Rick could finish his reply.

"Who did she learn that from?", Michonne asked under her breath.

"I don't know. I wish I did, but I don't", Rick sighed, still watching his children, "They're gonna order everythan' off that menu-"

"And so am I", She cackled, strutting over to join them on the couch.

"Can't we just stay here and eat all day?", Carl handed his mother the booklet as she sat down beside him, "Isn't that the best way to end a vacation?"

"Your mother has already made a plan to empty my account, so I don't think so", Rick took a seat in the arm chair.

"Can we do anything? We don't need to go to the kids club?"

Both Rick and Michonne raised an eyebrow at the teenager, before Michonne quizzed, "What did you have in mind?"

His steel blue gaze reminded Rick of his fathers as they moved around the room, his mind coming through ideas, "Let's have lunch out on the upper deck then? You can see everything from up there?"

Rick was touched by his son's enthusiasm for them to do something together as a family, "That's what you want? For us to have lunch up there?"

The teenager nodded, "Yeah? We can take pictures and stuff…"

"That's a great idea, son"

Michonne's eyes soon glistened, "That's how you want us to end our trip? All of us together-"

"Daddy! Mama's starting to cry!", Judith announced with a slightly panicked tone.

"Oh my god, mom, please", Carl groaned, covering his face with his hands.

"It's just so sweet!", She wrapped her arm over his shoulders, pulling her son close so she could kiss his head.

Rick chuckled at her, feeling his heart swell for the three most important people in his life, "Alright, let's just get this feast out the way before your mother really gets going"

Despite behaving in a manner that led to the premature end of his family's vacation, those last few hours they had on the ship was the best for Rick, and he was sure they would all agree. It was an unparalleled feeling, and while he would never admit it to Michonne, he was glad he did what he did, as it led to the perfect ending.


	40. Chapter 40

**Chapter 40:**

 _'Well hello, Mrs Grimes...'_

"Home sweet home!", Michonne sighed as she stepped into the living room, missing the smell of their house.

"I need to pee!", Judith called, dropping her bags and running up the stairs.

"I'm so hungry", Carl groaned, dropping his own bags beside his sisters as he stalked down the hallway to the kitchen.

"You both better get back here and pick up these bags!", Rick called, also dropping their luggage down as he slammed the door, "We've been home for two seconds!"

Michonne groaned as she turned back to face him, "Well that feeling didn't last long"

"We need to go grocery shopping!", Carl called from the kitchen.

"I hope you have the money!", Rick yelled back, "And take your head out the fridge!"

"I need to call Andrea and tell her we're back", Michonne huffed, taking her phone out of her Jean pocket.

"Can that wait? She's gonna try to come over and I'd like to enjoy the peace and quiet while it lasts-"

"Daddy! There's a spider in the bathroom!", Judith cried from the top of the stairs.

"Great. Just great. It's probably the one that Carl didn't see in the attic. It made itself comfortable when we were gone- how big is it sweetie?!", He stopped at the bottom of the stairs with his hands at his sides.

Judith held up her hands to a size comparable to a grapefruit, "This big"

Rick recoiled at the possible incorrect estimation, "It's grown."

Michonne snickered at him, strolling down the hallway, "It was enjoying the peace and quiet too"

"That's not funny-"

"Get up there and kill it before your daughter has an accident!"

"Mom the sinks being weird again!", Carl groaned, stepping away from the faucet as she entered the kitchen.

"What? What's wrong with it?", She frowned, joining him by the sink, "No water?"

"Nope."

"Oh great, just what we need", She sighed, turning the nozzle back and forth, "Your father said he fixed this, but I have a feeling he just yelled at it until it started working again"

Carl chuckled, "It started working again out of pure fear-"

"Exactly-", Michonne didn't know what she did, but within seconds, water came shooting out from the broke tap in all directions, "Oh my god! Rick! Rick!"

"Dad!", Carl yelled, trying to cover the whole in the sink.

"The water! Switch off the water!", Michonne screamed to her son, begin to slip as water was also pouring from beneath the cab it, "Oh my god!"

"Dad! The sinks broken again!", Carl called out as he ran through the house.

"What?!"

Michonne was at a loss for what to do, so she climbed on to the counter and covered the temporary geyser with both hands, hoping it would help some way.

"Shit!", Rick cursed as he stormed into the kitchen.

"I thought you fixed this?!", She questioned angrily, turning her face away from the water.

"Well so did I!", He barked back, his eyes widening, "How the hell did the tap come off?!"

"Just help me, you jack ass!"

"Where is it?!"

The pressure began to die down, and the amount of water lessened, allowing Michonne to move her hands, "It just broke off in my-"

Both of them looked around with alarmed eyes when a loud rumbling sound rang out from beneath the sink. Michonne hopped off the counter, tilting her head to listen. A drenched Carl appeared at the doorway, and he too stopped to listen, placing himself between his mother and father.

When the noise finally stopped, Michonne and Carl both looked to Rick, who slowly shook his head, "I don't even know what that could have been-"

She grabbed a handful her locks and squeezed the excess water from them, "My patience. That's what that was. It was my patience for you leaving my body-"

"How did that even happen? We haven't even been home for ten minutes and you broke somethan' already-"

"I did not! Carl switched the tap on and no water came out, so I tried and as you can see all the water from the ocean came out!", She shifted her stance, hating the squishing sound her shoes made when she did, "My Manolo's!"

"Think we need a plumber…", Carl ejected quietly, looking down at his wet t-shirt.

Rick shook his head more adamantly, "Nah. We'll just clean this up for now, fix it in the morning. I'll give Daryl a call, he'll come help-"

"Just call a plumber! Unless you want us all to put our bathing suits on every time we go to the sink!", Michonne snapped, ripping off her heels, as she turned to the door, "Look at the floor! Just look at it-"

"Where are you going?!", Rick's face crumbled with confusion as he watched her back.

"To dream that I was still on the boat!"

…

"I've missed you so much. Have you missed me?"

Michonne cackled at her friend as she took a seat in the recliner, "Of course I have"

Andrea gave her an evil grin, "Where's grandpa?"

"In the kitchen. Fixing the sink. We had swimming lessons in the kitchen last night when we got home-"

"Again?! Didn't he just fix that?", Andrea sat back with an annoyed expression.

She groaned, rolling her eyes, "Please. Let's not even go there"

Her best friend sighed, sitting back in the chair, "So he got you kicked off the boat, huh? I always knew he shouldn't be allowed to travel"

Michonne snickered, "Yeah he did, but believe it or not I enjoyed the last day more than any other"

"Sweet….", Andrea tilted her head at her as she smiled, "I still would have choked him-"

"The temptation was there, but he said sorry… took us shopping..."

"Oh! Well. Never mind then"

"Aunt Drea!", Judith cheered as she bolted into the living room, heading straight for her aunt's lamp.

"My little Judy pie! I missed you so much!", The blonde woman beamed, taking her in her arms, "Did you find a rich boyfriend on the boat?"

"No", Judith shook her head with disappointment.

"Oh no! We're gonna have to find you one from around here then, aren't we?"

"Daddy won't like that"

"That's because your daddy suffers from separation anxiety-"

"Andrea", Michonne warned dryly.

"Fine", the woman snorted, "So what did you get me? Did you sneak a pretty boy in your suitcase for me?"

"No", Michonne rolled her eyes at her friend as she stood up, "And I'm sure Shane would be heartbroken to hear that"

"That's why we don't tell him. Duh!?"

Michonne went to retrieve the bag of souvenirs that she left in the dining room, but stopped in the hallway when she noticed Rick and Daryl were planted in front of the sink, staring at it with pensive expressions. She watched them for a few moments before grabbing the bag and heading back to the living room. She didn't need to know what had them both so perplexed.

"Have you spoken to Maggie or Glenn?"

Andrea's eyes flew open as she looked to Michonne, "Oh my god, yes I did, and you will never guess what happened"

"What?", She sat down quickly, wearing a worried frown.

"Oh, wait, nothing to do with them, they're fine, but I went to meet her for lunch and guess who the hell I saw. Just guess. Blast from the past"

She narrowed her eyes at her friend, "Who?"

"Mike Hanson".

"Who?!"

"Mike! College Mike!"

Michonne's eyes widened as her brain recalled the person from an old memory, and she gasped, "Hey! Quiet!"

Andrea looked towards the living room door, "Rick wouldn't remember-"

"Of course he would! He remembers everything he deems to be a potential threat!", She hissed at the blonde woman, "What was he doing here?"

"He said he works at the elementary school now. He's the new third grade teacher…", Andrea's eyes sailed over to Judith, "Oh… he'll be her teacher right?"

Michonne's expression was a mixture of both shock and horror.

"I think I looked at him the exact same way", Andrea gave her a sympathetic look, "He asked about you. Asked if we were still friends and I told him we were and he was going to ask something else, but some lady turned up and he had to go"

"So he lives here now? And he's a teacher? Please tell me he's married with kids or something?"

"Didn't see a ring. And trust me, I looked"

Michonne bit her lip nervously, "Andrea this isn't good-"

"Oh I know. I've been wondering how you'd figure out a way to keep Rick away from her school for the next year…", The blond snickered, "He'll probably go nuts-"

"Probably? Of course he will! He ruined a creepy crew member's life for winking at me just a day ago!"

"Really?! Was he cute?"

"Stop talking to me."

Andrea grinned at her, while Michonne ran her hands over her face. She was about to say something else when she heard footsteps coming down the hallway, so she sat back and tried to behave as if she wasn't just talking about an ex-boyfriend.

"What's going on?", She questioned innocently.

"Hardware store. Need some stuff", Rick answered tiredly.

Judith tore her eyes from the TV and ran over to her father, taking his hand, "Can I come?"

"Yeah, sweetie"

"Need anythan' outside?", Daryl asked as he opened the front door.

"Oh no, we're fine, you go on", Michonne insisted in a light tone, "So wait, can I get started on dinner?"

Rick glanced over his shoulder at her as he left, "It's gonna get messy in there so just order somethan'"

"Alright".

As soon as the door clicked closed Andrea raised her eyebrows at Michonne, slowly crossing her arms, "Why do you look so guiltily? You haven't even done anything!"

"Because! I treated Mike so horribly and to hear he's back-"

"You didn't remember who he was when I first said his name!"

"I remember now! And do you remember how horrible I was to him?", Michonne cringed at the thought as she covered her face, "I broke up with him, told him I needed to be single for a while, then got with Rick. It looked like I broke up with him for Rick-"

"But it didn't happen like that. You fell in love with grandpa and you couldn't help it"

She groaned, "If he's Judith's teacher then that means there's no hiding from him-"

"He's still hot though. He had on sweatpants and I'm sure I could see his-"

"Andrea!"

"I was going to say wallet!", Her friend through her hands up in the air in surrender.

"No you weren't!"

The blond woman then threw her head back, cackling wildly, "Your right"

"You are filthy".

…

"You already have work in the bedroom? Really Michonne?"

She glanced up at him from the sheet of paper in her hand, "Andrea came straight from work so she had them with her. I asked to take a look"

"What is it?", He frowned, throwing his jeans over her vanity chair.

"Negan's case… you know his business is in someone else's name?"

He stopped moving around to look at her.

"Someone called Molly Deene? Andrea is trying to hunt her down…"

Her husband bit his lip as he wore a pensive expression, "What are you trying to say?"

"Negan is saying he's just the face for the business, Molly owns the car lot, so if the cars were being used to transport drugs-"

"Don't say it. Don't say it", He growled, raking his fingers through his hair.

"Don't get all worked up. Andrea might find her and she might be able to prove that she had nothing to do with it-"

"The fact that this woman is even involved with him in the first place tells us she's probably crooked too, so for all we know she might even take the fall for him-"

"We don't know that yet, Rick"

"I want that son of a bit bitch behind bars. I want all of them behind bars-"

"I know, but we'll have to see how this plays out first. Unless you can come up with some hard evidence for the prosecution to use?"

He glared at the wall in front of him, clenching his jaw, "Yeah"

Her eyes fell to his stomach, and she could still see the faint scars from where he was shot. It angered her, and hurt her at the same time to see her husband marked that way, "Come sit with me"

His eyes darted down to her, "What?"

"Come sit with me", She repeated firmly.

"You don't ever ask me to come sit with you-"

"Well I'm asking now, Rick-"

"You've already got my card so I don't know what else you want"

She pursed her lips in a bid to stop herself from smiling like a fool, "Get over here now"

He raised an eyebrow at her in a way that told her that he was officially turned on, "Well hello, Mrs Grimes-"

"Stop it-"

He began to peel off his boxers, "You know, if this is what you wanted then you could have just asked. I would have been on that bed by now-"

"Put your penis away!", She chuckled at him from behind the sheet of paper.

"Nope. He's out, he's up, and he's ready for you", He grinned, climbing towards her on the bed.

"I just wanted you to sit with me!", She explained, but he still proceeded to snatch the paper out of her hand and throw it away from them.

"Oh, you'll be sitting on somethan' in a minute-"

She cackled as he pulled her towards him by her waist, "For just once in your life, can you ignore your urges and just listen to me?"

He laid her down and placed himself between her legs, tugging her shorts off as soon as she was on her back, "Is it life or death?"

"Yes", She lied.

"Is it one of the children's lives that's in danger?"

She narrowed her eyes at him, though she still brought her legs together to he could pull her shorts off with ease, "Maybe"

He raised both eyebrows at her, "Don't go telling lies now-"

"Look, I'm just saying that I don't want you to get all worked up about the Negan thing. One way or another you'll get him. I know you will"

He threw her shorts over his shoulder, "I know. I won't rest till I do. Now take your top off"

She shook her head at him, "You really do have a one track mind-"

"I do. And all I'm doing on that track is chasing you"

She hated the fact that she chortled at his joke, but the man's sense of humour seemed to get greater with each passing day.

It was only a while later that Michonne found herself biting the palm of her hand to keep quiet as Rick drove his member deep within her core again. She lay on her side, with one leg bent in front of her between Rick's legs as he sat on his heels. One of his hands held her hip, while the other strummed at her exposed bud with his index and middle fingers.

She missed being able to make as much noise as they wished, but now they were home they had to be considerate.

"You like that?", He questioned brusquely, his tone low.

"God, yes!", She moaned, a shiver traveling up her spine with every thrust.

He was a magnificent lover, and she wondered how he was able to make every time more magical than the last. Her eyes would roll around in her head, her legs would tremor and she'd leave him drenched in passion by the time he was done with her. She craved his spectacular ending.

"Beg for it"

His voice alone made her quiver. Nothing turned her on more than his dominance when they had sex. His voice was dangerously low, his accent thick in his throat. His eyes would comb over every square inch of her body, and he'd occasionally lick his lips, as if he could taste her in the air.

She would be his genie if possible, giving him anything he wanted in those moments, "Please, fuck me!"

It did the trick, as he drilled her faster, "Yeah?"

"Yes!", Little cries rolled from her lips as she clung to the bed sheets, arching her back so his length completely filled her.

"You're always… dripping wet…", He breathed, with slight disbelief, "Do I make you wet?"

"Yes!", She choked out between sounds.

His pace quickened, his length barely leaving her as he rested his hand on the thigh of her bent leg, holding her in place as he buried himself in her heat. Her ass bounced up with every thrust, her leg beginning to shake as carried her to her orgasm.

"Oh god, yes! Please, fuck me Mike!..."

If ever there was a moment in Michonne's life, where she would have preferred to die, than be in Rick's company, then it would have been the second Mike's name left her mouth. The look on his face would forever be burned into her memory, and she wished his reaction wasn't such an immediate one.

Her husband withdrew himself in the blink of an eye, and used her leg to roll her on to her back. His damp hair hung around his head, his chest still rising and falling quickly, his eyes were no longer hooded with passion, but wide from anger.

She looked back up at him with sheer dread, as she couldn't believe the name left her lips so freely at such an intimate time. Before that day she hadn't even thought of Mike, and now she was calling out his name like it was second nature. She wanted to get up and look at herself in the mirror to question who she was.

"What the _hell_ was that, Michonne?"


	41. Chapter 41

**Chapter 41:**

 _'The truth?'_

"Can I just explain-"

Rick leaned over his wife and switched on the lamp beside the bed, wanting to see her face clearly as she spoke, "Go on. Explain it to me, right now"

She sat up in the bed and scooted back, "Okay, do you remember Mike? The boyfriend I had before-"

"I remember exactly who he is. Next?", He hurried coldly, choosing to blink only when necessary.

She exhaled as she ran her hands over her face, "Andrea told me she saw him when we were gone…. He lives here now, and he's going to be working at the-"

Rick's pulse quickened, "Yeah? Are you excited about that or somethan'?"

Her brow furrowed, "God no, Rick. I haven't even thought about him in years. I didn't even recognise his name when Andrea first said his name-"

"But you're thinking about him now, huh?", He cocked his head at her, his eyes locked on to hers.

"I was thinking about you!", She protested, "I don't even know why-"

"You wanna see him? Talk to him?"

"No! I don't!"

"Then what the hell was that, Michonne?!"

"I don't know!", She stressed, throwing her hands in the air, "I don't know where that even came from, Rick!"

He climbed off the bed and stomped over to his dresser, taking out a pair of sweatpants.

"Where are you going?", She quizzed, her eyes following his every move.

"I need a drink or somethan'-"

"Can you not do that right now? Rick, that was nothing! It meant nothing! It was just a slip up-"

"Was it? Are you sure about that?", He looked over his shoulder at her.

Her eyes widened, "Yes! What do you mean am I sure?!-"

"You find out this guy is in town and all of a sudden you're calling out for him while we're having sex?", He turned to face her, both eyebrows raised.

"I was not calling out for him-"

"Well you weren't calling out for me", He pointed at his chest, "That's for damn sure-"

She groaned whilst running her hands over her face, "Rick, please, can we not put so much worth on his name? It didn't mean anything! I told you I wasn't even thinking about him!"

He stared at her, clenching his jaw as he thought about it. He shook his head, heading towards the door, barely able to formulate another sentence.

The image of his wife calling out her ex boyfriend's name replayed in his mind. He could tell she was enjoying their tryst as she became more vocal, clutching at the bedsheets desperately, and squirming as her orgasm approached. He played the scene again in his mind it made Rick's back stiff with rage. Their sex life was something that he took such pride in, and he was hell bent on giving her everything he had in the bedroom. Nothing pleased him more, and nothing excited him more, than being able to send her to the heavens from his touch. He considered those moments with her as one of the most beautiful.

He ransacked his memories, trying to remember what Mike even looked like. He imagined if he saw him he might be able to recognise him, though he had only seen the man a small handful of times over a decade ago, but that didn't stop him from imagining another man with Michonne. Another man's hands exploring her body while she purred for him, looking at this dark figure the way she would look at him. While he conjured up the visuals on his own accord, it was enough to leave beside himself with fury.

When he finished his first shot of scotch in the moon lit kitchen, he decided that part of their life had been ruined, and it drove him to pour another shot.

"What's going on?"

Rick nearly dropped the glass when he heard Carl's voice. He squinted at his son with alarm, "You're up?"

"Well, you and mom were yelling?", Carl shuffled deeper into the kitchen, his brows knitted together and his eyes barely open, "What happened?"

He shook his head, ashamed that his son heard their argument, "Nothing. Just a little argument"

"This late at night?"

He wished his son could sleep through everything like his daughter, "Sorry for waking you. Don't worry, everything's fine"

The teenager slowly nodded, his gaze downcast, "Okay…"

Rick knew his son didn't believe him, and he could only hope that he didn't hear what had caused the argument in the first place, "Go on, it's fine now so go back to bed"

"Are you coming?"

"...In a little while"

…

"Daddy, mama doesn't do it like that"

Rick eyed his daughter's reflection in the mirror, "Can't I just put it up in a ponytail? You like your hair like that, right?"

Judith furrowed her little brows at him, "That's all you do"

He inwardly groaned, continuing to brush it up into a ponytail anyway, "Sweetie, look at daddy's hair, does it look like he knows what to do with it?"

She giggled at him, "Nope. It's always a little messy".

He feigned offence, "I will have you know, my sweet little angel, that I do it like that on purpose. It's to scare everybody off. _Especially_ little boys"

"Aunt Drea said you have separate ability"

Rick frowned at her, "Separate ability? What's that?"

"She said it's because you don't want me to have a rich boyfriend"

He squinted at the mirror as he tried to understand what his daughter was relaying to him, then realisation hit him, " _Separation Anxiety_?"

Judith tilted her head back to look at him, "Didn't I say that?"

Laughter burst from his lips, "You were close, sweetie, very close, but remember what we said about your Aunt?"

"...She's Mama's evil twin?"

"No, not that"

"...She doesn't like to go home?"

Rick made a mental note to censor what he said about the blonde woman around his daughter in the future, "Not that either, we said that we shouldn't remember what she told us because she's-"

"Crazy!", Judith cheered.

"That's my girl", He grinned, using his fingers to fluff out his daughter's dark curls, as it was a technique he had seen Michonne use on many occasions, "Alright now, go put your clothes on, we're leaving soon"

"Okie doke"

The two of them left the bathroom, with Judith heading to her bedroom, while Rick went to his own room to change his shirt. He wasn't expecting to see Michonne, making their bed for the day, causing his steps to falter ever so slightly, but he still continued to his closet.

"What are you doing? Are you going out?", She quizzed, fluffing the pillows before lining them up.

He didn't answer her immediately, as he didn't want to.

"Rick?", She called firmly.

He cleared his throat while he took out a red, plaid button from the railing, "Going over to Maggie and Glenn's…"

"Why didn't you tell me? I wanted to go and see them too"

He closed the closet door and turned to face her, though he didn't look directly at her, "Well you can meet us up there. Carl might want to come along later too."

She backed up, and kicked the bedroom door closed with her foot before folding her arms over her chest, "I get it, Rick. You're mad. I do understand that-"

"Do you? Because I don't think do?", He finally looked at her as he pulled his t-shirt over his head.

"I may not-"

"You ever hear me call anyone else's name when I was with you? Jessie? Karen? Heather-'

"I may not feel the exact same way you do", She bit the words out as she spoke over him, "But I'm still horrified about it too. It was just… I-I don't even know what to call it-"

"The truth?", He ejected dryly.

She inhaled slowly, trying to control her retaliation, "No. It was not the truth, so don't say things like that to me. I think It's just guilt resurfacing itself from all those years ago-"

"Guilt for what?"

"For how things ended with him! We were together for two years and then we broke up and it looked like I got with you straight after-"

"So what does that mean?", He crossed his arms over his chest.

"It means I felt horrible for it! Is that wrong?!-"

"What do you plan on doing about that then?", He looked her up and down, his mind filled with a tornado of questions, "Why didn't you tell me what Andrea told you?"

"Why didn't I tell you?", She raised her eyebrows at him, "Are you kidding me right now, Rick?"

"Does it look like I'm kidding? Am I giving you that impression?"

"I need to ask you that because it seems that you've forgot how you react when it comes to me and other men-"

"Aren't you the one that's always going on about how close we are now?", He tilted his head at her as he pulled his shirt on, "Saying we should be able to tell each other everythan'? Doesn't matter how bad it is-"

"I still believe that", She affirmed proudly, "But the fact of the matter is, you're very territorial, and you're a hothead, and that makes innocent things like this difficult to approach you with-"

"If you haven't done anythan' wrong then it shouldn't be a problem", He countered angrily, "If it's all as innocent as you're trying to make this out to be, then why the hell do you have to second guess telling me about it?"

"You would think that, wouldn't you? You would think it's that simple, but it's not. Far from it, actually"

"So it's my own fault that this came out the way it did? It's my fault that you felt you couldn't tell me, and it's my fault that you called out this man's name?"

"Don't do that!", She pointed her finger at him, "I'm not saying that! I'm explaining to you why I felt I couldn't tell you about him!-"

"And I get it! You feel like you can talk to me about everythan' but the thangs that really get me going! That makes perfect sense-"

"What other things are you talking about?!"

"Ryan?! Did you forget about him? If he hadn't sent that fucking bottle over, would have said anythan' to me about him talking to you?"

"It's the same damn thing, Rick! Look how you went over to him!-"

"So what is it you want then, Michonne?", He rested his hands on his sides, "Do you wanna be hit on? You wanna catch another man's attention in secret?"

"No I don't-"

"Did you wanna see how far Ryan would take it before you had to say somethan' to me? Or did you wanna be able to see Mike without my knowledge? Catch up with him right under my nose-"

"No!", She almost screamed, balling her fists at her side, "I don't want anything like that!"

"Mom? Dad?", Carl's voice outside the door snapped them both out of their rage.

She closed her eyes for a moment, taking in a long, calming breath before she turned back to the door, opening it swiftly, "Hey, sorry, what's wrong?"

Carl eyes quickly scanned over both his parents, "You're yelling. Judith came down to get me from the front yard"

Rick's chest grew tight at the thought of his daughter running to her brother in panic. He stalked around the bed, "Sorry about that son, we gotta go now, anyway"

Michonne stepped away from the door, and so did Carl as he passed them both, and he was shocked to find his daughter was sat on the top of the stairs, looking the most worried he had ever seen her.

"You ready to go, sweetie?", He softened his voice as he approached her, holding out his hand. She nodded in doubtful manner, but still slipped her hand into his, and her expression didn't change.

The last thing he wanted was for his children to hear he and Michonne yell at each other so aggressively. While they did often bicker, he never wanted them to play witness to a full blown argument like the ones they had had. He was as contrite for his actions as he was hurt, and he found himself at a loss for what to do.

"You alright?", Rick glanced at Judith in the back seat, through the rear view mirror. His dark mood was alleviated by her presence.

"Are you and mama mad at each other?", She asked, tilting her head to see his face.

"No, we weren't mad. We just weren't listening to each other properly"

His daughter sat back in her seat, "You sounded mad. You used your 'angry' voice"

"Well, daddy's 'angry' voice and daddy's 'not listening' voice kinda sound the same, but it won't happen again, alright?"

She nodded, her curls bouncing behind her head, "Okay. Are you and mama going to be nice to each other?"

"We are", He lied, rubbing his lip with the back of his finger, "So how about we about we stop and get a milkshake or somethan' before we go to aunt Maggie's?"

"Okie doke".

…

"Got a shit load of stuff for you to sign off here", Leon dropped a pile of papers on Rick's desk, causing him to jump out of his thoughts.

"Great. Just what I missed", He answered dryly, not even attempting to look at the work load.

"How was the cruise? Y'all have fun?", the other man asked, taking a seat in the chair opposite his desk with a little grunt.

"Yeah. The kids loved it", He sighed, his gaze falling from the wall in front of him.

"Nice. I would love to take Mindy on one but I don't know if I could do five whole days"

"Just get in a two fights in one night and they'll kick you right off", Rick almost smirked.

Leon's eyes widened, "You did not-"

"I did. It was wrong but I did", He confessed, his hand rummaging in his stationary pot.

"What happened? Someone look at Michonne a little too long?"

Rick gripped the pen in his hand tighter a little tighter than necessary, "That was one of them. The other thought he'd try to intimidate Carl when no one was looking"

"Your life is like a damn soap opera"

"You'd think it was. I just want it to get back to normal now...", His words had more meaning behind them than Leon would understand.

Daryl strolled in the room with his phone in one hand and a brown paper file in the other, "Rosita's looking for you"

"Me?", Leon rose his eyebrows, craning his neck to look at him.

"Yep. Somethan' about one of the squad cars"

Leon groaned, placing his hands on the armrests as he rose to his feet, "She's been on my ass about leaving my lunch in it"

"Yeah because your diet it made up of onions", Daryl scowled at the man's back as he left the room, "Smells like death in there when you're done with it-"

"Alright!"

Rick only half listened to the little argument going on over his head, as he had begun going through the reports, leaving his friends to bicker. He studied one sheet for a moment, then held it up for Daryl to see, "Where are we on that robbery on the jewellery store?"

Daryl shook his head, "Nowhere. We checked out surveillance and everythan'. The cameras in the store ain't worth shit so you can just about make out a figure, and even then you have to squint to see it"

Rick stared at him, "What about the neighbouring stores?"

"Checked those too. Nothing. So whoever did it, disappeared on the spot"

"We'll go check it out some time this week then… And I wanna see if there's any more evidence we can pick up about Negan, too"

Daryl frowned as he sat back in his seat, "Why? They got more than enough over there"

"He's got Andrea hunting down some woman who owns the lot. Everythan' is in her name so she might take the fall"

The other man seemed to consider the information, his eyes darting all around the room, "Alright. Fine… 'Chonne tell you that?"

"Yeah", Rick spat the word out as he dug the pen into the sheet of paper, "How's Sasha? She got back alright?"

"Yeah. And she chewed my ear off for not going with her"

He smirked, "You and her family still don't get along after all these years"

"I don't mind her brother, he's cool, but it's her parents and her cousins", Daryl growled, "They're always going on about somethan'... telling her to move back with them in the city and moaning that they don't get to see Lily as much"

"When's the last time they came down here?"

"When Lily was born!", he stressed, aa if it was the most ridiculous topic, "They don't even try to come down and see her! I think _Merle's_ been more consistent than them!"

A chuckle escaped Rick, "Let them stay up there. Don't worry about it"

"Ya damn right", His friend calmed, shifting in his seat, "Whenever Lily comes back she's always in a hyped up mood too cause they spoil her rotten. She didn't even get to sleep until late and she barely woke up for school this morning"

"Just get to bed early tonight. Let her catch up…", Rick furrowed his brow as he read over a sentence on the police report that confused him.

"Yeah", He rasped, resting a foot on Rick's desk, "I met Mrs Hanson's son up there as well. Carol introduced us"

"Oh, yeah? I forgot she mentioned he was gonna be working there. He's Lily's teacher?"

"Nah. I think he might be Judith's"

"Yeah? I guess I gotta meet him then"

Daryl hummed a response as he took out his phone, "I'm sure I seen him before. He looked a little familiar but… can't put my finger on it"

Rick began writing again, "He didn't live out here when we were kids?"

"Nah. Didn't he go to a fancy private school in the city or somethan'? I remember hearing somethan' like that anyway"

He glanced up at his friend, "What's his name?"

"Ah, shoot. What's his name again?", Daryl scratched lightly at his beard, squinting into the corner of the room, "Let me text Sasha and ask her"

"Well as long as he's good with the kids, then I doubt I'd have a problem with him"

"He seems nice enough"

"Hey guys", Rosita chimed as she leaned on the door frame, "Uh, career day next week! Don't forget!"

"Yeah. I won't", Rick waved a dismissive hand at her, "You remind me every chance you get"

"Sheila ordered the banner and pamphlets, so all you have to do is-"

"Talk to the kids. I know. I have no problem with that. I may not have done it for a while but I'm not that rusty."

She rolled her eyes at him, turning her attentions to the other man, "Am I signing you up for this as well, Daryl?"

The other man snorted, "I'm no good stuff like that-"

"Sign him up", Rick instructed, without taking his eyes off the task in front of him, "If I'm doing it then so are you-"

"What the hell does that mean? We're meant to suffer together or somethan'?"

"That's exactly what that means. So sign him up please, Rosita"

"Will do!", She tapped the door as she flashed him a quick smile, before spinning of her heel and disappearing down the hall.

"I can't stand teenagers. They ain't all like Carl, you know. Most of them are little assholes", Daryl croaked, looking at his phone as it chimed.

A disbelieving chortle left Rick as he eyed his friend.

"Oh, that's it. His name's Mike".


	42. Chapter 42

**Chapter 42:**

 _'That's not an option for me_ '

Michonne gazed aimlessly around the bathroom as she laid in the bathtub, her knees poking out in the blanket of bubbles. The air was thick with the scent of lavender, as she used nearly half a bottle of bath oils. Her long locks hung over the side of the tub, her head resting on a small towel that she had rolled into a pillow. Once she had finished making dinner for the kids, she left then too eat, while she disappeared to relax, and hide, in the bathroom.

Her hands ran across her stomach beneath the water, and she rested her them on her lower abdomen as she muttered to herself, "I hope you're okay in there"

She heard when Rick arrived home, and Judith was there to greet him. He hung around downstairs for a while, catching up with her and Carl before stomping tiredly up the steps. Michonne didn't move from her position, and she hoped she didn't have to run into him, as she was growing tired of arguing with him. She understood his anger, but the screaming matches were unbearable. She wished he would calm so she could speak to him properly, but she didn't expect such a thing to happen any time soon.

After finishing in the bathroom, she crept along the landing and into the bedroom to change into her pyjamas.

"Mom?", her son called quietly from outside the door.

"Come in", She chimed, sitting on the bed to cream her arms.

He appeared with a sceptical look, "What are you doing?"

"I told you, I had a bath"

"You were in there for like, an hour", He responded dryly.

"Well sorry, did the realise there was a timer", She smirked.

The teenager glanced over his shoulder, before stepping into the room, "Is this because of dad?"

"No", She replied firmly, hoping he didn't realise she was lying.

"Then why are you both being… weird?"

She frowned at him, "What? How?"

"I don't know, you're just acting like everything is fine but clearly, you keep arguing…"

"It's just a disagreement-"

Carl ignored her; "I mean, you always argue, but now it's like you're _really_ arguing-"

"We don't always see eye to eye on a things and it gets us all worked up. It's nothing to-"

"You probably shouldn't be getting worked up though…"

She dropped her hands on her lap as she looked up at him, "Don't worry. We won't argue like that- well… I hope we won't argue like that again-"

"Carl! It's your turn to wash up!", Rick yelled as he ascended the stairs, "And pick up your skateboard and your boots! Nearly tripped me and your sister up when I came in!"

The teenager groaned, rolling his head back as he turned back to the bedroom door, "Fine!"

The two males nearly collided when they met on the landing, leading Rick to frown at his son, "Are you trying to knock me over on purpose?"

Carl snickered as he inched past him.

"Damn teenager", He muttered as he stepped into the room, glancing at Michonne. She watched him from the corner of her eye as she closed the cap on her moisturiser.

"So, you weren't going to tell me about Mike working at the school?"

Her eyes rolled closed, "I tried."

"You did? When was that?"

"The night it happened."

"We've spoken since then. You could have said somethan'-"

"You're right, but who really thinks about the smaller details when they're yelling at the top of their lungs", She stood up and stepped towards her dresser.

Rick eyed her suspiciously, "Did you speak to him?"

"I had to. He's her teacher"

"You _had_ to, huh?"

She rolled her eyes closed as she faced away from him, "Yes, Rick."

He shook his head as he smirked, slowly beginning to pace on the other side of the bed, "It's like you don't even see what the problem is here-"

"I do-"

"Do you? Are you sure about that? Because you seem to have a damn attitude with me over something you did-"

"I do not have attitude!", She spun around to look at him, "I'm just sick of arguing! I know I messed up and I've tried to explain myself, but you're still angry about it-"

"Of course I'm still mad about it! You laid right there", He pointed his finger angrily at the bed, "Right in front of me, and called out his name like you meant it! And I'm starting to wonder if it was actually a mistake, because you don't seem sorry at all!"

Michonne was stunned, "What?"

"You heard me", He stepped closer to her, "So now what happens? Now you've seen him, how do you feel? Did you see somethan' in him that you missed today?-"

"Stop that!", She shouted, her eyes glistening from the glowing lamp, "What the hell is wrong with you?!"

"You're what's wrong with me!", he roared, "You know I keep seeing it in my mind?! Clear as day! As if just happened seconds ago! And to top it all off, that asshole is only a stone's throw away, and he doesn't even know that he has an enemy yet. He doesn't even know why I want to beat him beyond recognition, and it's all because of you. Because I'm so afraid that you might decide that you don't want me anymore"

Michonne knew he suffered with some degree of insecurities when it came to her, and she could have kicked herself for not realising how her mistake would make them worse. Her heart ached for him. She approached him with caution, "Rick. Please"

"Don't", He warned, raising his hand to stop her.

She whacked his hand away from her as she placed herself in front of him, "Look at me"

He shook his head, his eyes struggling to focus on something else.

She placed her hands on either side of his jaw and he tensed from her touch, but that didn't deter her, as she gently turned him to face her, "That isn't an option for me"

His gaze finally met hers, though he still wore his angered expression.

"I told you, what happened meant nothing, and Mike means nothing, but you mean everything, and I mean, absolutely everything, to me", She stressed, stroking his beard with her thumb.

He rested his hand on her wrist, and she felt the weight of his head in her hands as he finally relaxed.

"I don't like when we argue like that, Rick. I hate it. I don't want us to go anywhere near that path again. That scares me.", She stressed softly, "We've come so far, and nothing would break me more than us falling apart now. I couldn't think of anything worse than that"

He sighed when he breathed the words, "Neither can I"

She was hit with a wave of relief, "Then we won't go there again. Ever"

…

Michonne hoped her day would wind down peacefully after a long day at work. She had managed to pick up Carl without a hiccup, though the teenager had ignored her in favour of his phone on the drive over to the elementary school, but instead she found herself face to face with Mike, while a very unhappy Judith sat at a table not far from them.

"I know how kids are, they may not look like they're listening, but they subconsciously record bits and pieces of adult conversations and they relay it at a later date to our horror…", Mike explained, tipping his head towards the little girl.

"What exactly did she say…", Michonne squinted at the man.

"Well, she and Sam we're playing and Sam made a little mistake and Judith called a him, 'Jackass'..."

Michonne's expression only gave a small insight into the horror she truly felt, "What?"

"Yes.", Mike looked perplexed at the choice of insult.

She shifted from foot to foot as she tried to gather her wits, "We will definitely have a serious talk with her about this. She's usually so well behaved-"

"She was an absolute treat yesterday and up until that point today. Even after the incident she went back to doing her work without a problem."

Michonne's eyes sailed to her daughter, who was wearing a little scowl on her face, and she wasn't sure if her daughter looked more like her or her father, "Yeah…"

"I know it's not always easy to keep track of what's being said around them… I remember Andrea used to have quite a mouth on her"

Michonne rolled her eyes at the mention of her friend, "She still does"

Mike chuckled, "She seemed a little more tamed when I saw her, but I'm not sure if that's because she was surrounded by little girls"

"Oh, yes, our friends daughter's"

"That's sweet… Judith told me she had a big brother too?"

Michonne nodded, "Yes. I have a fifteen year old as well. He's waiting out in the car so… we should probably-"

"Oh, yes, of course, Judith", Mike called, "You can come over now"

The girl stood, and dragged her feet as she walked over to join them. Michonne took hold of her hand when she was close enough, "Well thank you, Mike, we will have to follow up on this."

"Yeah, sure, no problem at all. See you tomorrow Judith", He waved at the angry little girl.

"Bye", Judith all but spat out, holding her backpack by the strap so it scraped along the floor.

Michonne waited until they were out in the school playground, before talking to her daughter, "Judith, did you have a bad day today?"

"I said a bad word, didn't I?", Judith looked up at her mother with shame.

"It's not a very nice word at all"

"I thought it was a good word, I've heard you call daddy that?"

She inwardly groaned, wishing for the ground to swallow her up, "I have done, and I was very wrong to. It's one of those words that can upset people"

"Sam wasn't upset… but Mike was"

"Sam probably doesn't know what it means, honey", Michonne imagined the little boy had been exposed to much worse when he was in full care of both his parents, "But it's not a nice word, so we need to completely forget about it, okay?"

"Yes mama", Judith began to nod, before looking up to her mother with furrowed brows, "But what does it mean?"

"...It's kind of like 'stupid'..."

"...Oh… I didn't mean to call him that"

"I know you didn't, honey. And you have to remember to be gentle with Sam… he's sensitive."

"What took so long?", Carl quizzed as Michonne opened the back door for Judith.

"Had a talk with the teacher"

Carl's eyebrows shot up, "Already? What happened?"

"I called Sam a jackass", Judith relayed sadly as she sat down.

"Judith!", Michonne gasped, "Sweetie, you can't say it again!"

"Oh…", the little girl covered her mouth, "Sorry mama"

Carl's eyes bulged as he burst out laughing, "No way!"

"Carl! Stop it!"

The teenager ignored his mother as he chuckled in the passenger seat, "Oh my god! Why is that so funny?!"

"Carl!"

Carl rolled around, holding his stomach, "I'm sorry but…", He roared with laughter again.

Michonne got into the vehicle and glared at him, hoping to scare him into submission, but the boys laugh had always been a contagious one, and she found herself biting her lips together in a bid to suppress a chortle, "You can't laugh at this. This isn't good"

"I know, I know, but… that was the best thing ever", He praised as his chuckle died down, "I bet that dad's going to laugh when you tell him"

"He will not", She glanced at him with a frown as she pulled out of the parking spot.

"Let's bet on it", the teen urged excitedly, "If he laughs then… I get some of your secret stash"

"I don't have a secret-"

"In the shoe box behind the cereals in the pantry", Carl revealed dryly.

Michonne wanted to kick herself for not thinking of a better hiding place for her chocolates, "How did you even find that?"

"I knocked down a bunch of the boxes by accident a few weeks ago. So is it a deal?"

"What do I get if he doesn't laugh?"

Carl's brows knitted together as he thought, "I… will babysit dad _and_ Judith for the day… and you can go to a spa or something"

A snort of laughter left her, "You'll babysit your father too?"

"Yep."

"That is a deal"

…

"Ally's been enjoying preschool, and I'm glad but, it's been hell trying to get her to leave"

Michonne smiled as she moved the phone from one ear to another, "Really? That's a good thing though, you want her to enjoy it-"

"She ripped a display off the wall when I was carrying her out", Maggie sighed, tiredly.

"Oh… well, they probably didn't need it anyway"

Maggie chuckled down the phone, "Yeah, good excuse. How are the kids getting along?"

Michonne grabbed a large knife from the utensil drawer and began cutting into the peeled potatoes in front of her, "Carl only grunts when I ask him how school is, and Judith… she had a little slip of the tongue today"

"Oh god, what did she say? Was it 'asshole'? Glenn yelled that once in a minute of road rage and Ally said it for a week."

Michonne grinned at the little tale, "Close, but her chosen word was 'Jackass'..."

The woman chuckled again, "Isn't that what you call Rick?"

"It is! And she thought it meant something nice! I felt horrible for it"

"Aww! I imagine she made it sound cute", Maggie joked, "How is that husband of yours? Ain't it nice that I can say that again?"

"Yes it is nice", Michonne smiled, still cutting the potatoes, "He's fine… we've been having a little problem lately but I think we're moving past it"

"Already? What the hell is wrong with you two?"

"It was my fault… I also had a little slip of the tongue… at the wrong moment… and he was mad"

"Tell me."

Michonne stepped back towards the doorway to check if she was safe to speak, before hissing into the phone, "I yelled out an ex's name at the wrong time"

"No way! What?! Who?!"

"I don't know if you remember me telling you about Mike, right?"

"...Oh my god! That's the one Andrea told me about! She saw him the other day when we went out to lunch, you know he works at the-"

"Yes, he's Judy's teacher"

Maggie gasped, "Oh boy. Does Rick know? Has he killed him yet? He killed him, didn't he?"

"He knows, but obviously I drop her off and pick her up so he hasn't seen him…"

"Like that will stop him"

"I'm trying to calm him down about the whole thing, I hate that he got so mad-"

"It was an accident-"

"A big one! The biggest I've ever made! I don't even know why it happened! I wasn't even thinking about him"

"Then just apologise and move on! It's not as if you were having some sort of an affair behind his back!", Maggie stressed, "Didn't Andrea go through something like this? Before Shane?"

"Andrea has always gone through something like this, but she had an excuse, she didn't bother to learn names back then so she used to rename them", Both woman cackled, remembering the illicit stories the blonde women would tell them.

"Daddy!", Judith announced in the hallway.

Michonne glanced over her shoulder, "Maggie, I gotta go"

"Same here, we'll do lunch of somethan' soon"

"Alright, we will".

Michonne bid her friend farewell before hanging up the phone and continuing on with dinner. She partially listened to the little conversation Judith and her father had, before she heard her daughter's footsteps disappear back into the living room.

"What's going on?", Rick strolled into the kitchen with a tired expression, eyeing what she was doing.

"Burgers and fries for dinner", She informed, moving to check on the meat in the oven.

"Hey dad", Carl grinned as he leaned on the door frame , and Michonne imagined he raced down the stairs to see his father, "How was your day?"

Rick looked his son from head to toe as he leaned against the counter, "Fine? What did you break?"

Carl scoffed, "Nothing, but mom has something to tell you"

Michonne shook her head as she turned to face her husband, "Judith had a little problem in school today"

Rick's eyes grew wide with concern, "What?"

"She was playing with Sam… he did something wrong, and she called him a 'Jackass'", Michonne folded her arms over her chest as she waited for his reaction.

Her husband frowned, his eyes searching her face for the truth, "She called him a jackass?"

"Yep", Carl nodded, his eyes glued to his father's face.

Rick's gaze dropped when he began to nibble on his lip. Michonne was almost certain that he seemed bothered by the news, until the corners of his mouth began to turn up.

"See!", Carl exclaimed, pointing at his father, "I told you he'd laugh!"

"What is wrong with you?", Michonne questioned, squinting at Rick.

His shoulders began to shake as a silent chuckle escaped him, "I don't know why that is so funny to me"

"It is, right?", Carl held his abdomen as he started laughing heavily again.

"No, but we shouldn't laugh, son"

"I know but, she said it again in the car when I asked what happened, and when you actually hear it, it's the funniest thing ever"

"She said it again?", Rick's eyes darted to Michonne.

"She did", Michonne sighed as she went back to the boiling oil on the stove.

"Did you talk to her?"

"I did. She thought it meant something nice. And before you say anything else, it's my fault. I take full responsibility"

"Well I wasn't going to say that yet, but good", Rick's smile began to fade as he watched his son began rummaging in the pantry, "What are you doing?"

"Don't touch the Big Cat!", Michonne warned.

"There weren't any specifics, mom", The teen called over his shoulder as he retrieved the shoe box, "I bet mom that you would laugh when we told you about Judith, so now I get to raid mom's secret box of candy"

"How long has that been there?", Rick looked from his son to his wife with a confused expression.

"Long enough", She pouted, "Don't eat that now, dinner's nearly done"

"I'm not. It's all going in my secret stash", Carl smirked, his eyes combing over the wide variety of chocolate bars.

"So you're both hiding candy from each other?", Rick's face pinched at the revaluation, "We better not get ants"

"Your mom called earlier, she said she's going to come by in the week to drop off some things for the kids", She informed Rick, dropping the potatoes in the pan, "You know she said Gerald let it slip that your brother has a girlfriend?"

Rick looked at her strangely, "Since when?"

"Years, apparently. Your mom was… well, she was mad, of course"

His gaze trailed away from her as he seemed to think about it, before he shrugged, "Makes sense"

"Does it?"

"Yeah. He's always been like that."

"Thanks mom!", Carl called, sprinting out the kitchen with his winnings.

Michonne glanced at Rick as she wiped her hands with a paper towel, "Uh, listen… I made us an appointment with Aaron this week… Andrea said she can pick up the kids after school"

His head rolled back as he unbuttoned his shirt, "What for?"

"...For everything that's happened, Rick"

He groaned, "I'd rather just forget about it"

"But it's not just about that side of things… what about after all that? The arguing?"

"We said we wouldn't argue like that again-"

"The fact that we even have to make a pact like that is the problem", She turned to face him, "That shouldn't be a 'go to reaction'. I think he can help… with a lot of things right now"

He tilted his head at her, "What else?"

She hesitated, the words sitting on her tongue for a moment, "The baby… I think it might help for me to talk to someone about it"

His expression didn't change, "You want to talk to him about that?"

"Yes. I do"

"...And not me?"

She stepped closer to him, "This is something beyond you and I both-"

"I told you I'd help you"

"I know, and I still want your help, but I just don't think this is something that simple-"

"So what do you want to deal with as a couple? Because right now, I feel like you're expecting someone else to come in and fix our problems?"

"I want an outside opinion on what we can do to strengthen our relationship with each other, and my relationship with this baby", She planted herself in front of him, "Is that a bad thing?"

His gaze met hers, "We're meant to be able to handle thangs ourselves. I don't want us to have to depend on anyone else to help us understand each other-"

"We aren't depending on someone else. Everything I've learnt from Aaron, I store at the back of my mind, ready to use when necessary. I don't go running to him when I don't understand how you behave", She rested her hand flat on his chest as she pleaded with him, "Please? I really want us to get through this, Rick"

She could see he was battling with the idea, his eyes darting between each of hers as he searched for a possible counter argument. When it seemed he could find one, he reluctantly sighed, placing his hand over hers, "Fine".

"Thank you."


	43. Chapter 43

**Chapter 43:**

 _'You stop that'_

"So I heard that the two of you remarried! I'm so glad to hear that!"

Rick gave a strained smile, while Michonne answered Aaron for the both of them, "Thank you"

The counsellor grinned, "And how's things starting off the second time around?"

"...It started great. Really great… but then towards the end of last week we had a little- a big problem, and it's kind of set us back a couple steps"

"Oh?", Aaron's eyes darted back and forth between the two of them, "Go on"

"Well, a friend of mine had told me that an ex of mine had moved into town and I was pretty shocked, and later on I ended up calling out that exes name when we were 'together' in bed", Michonne briefed, "And ever since then it's just opened up a whole can of worms"

The counsellor cringed for the both of them, "Oh dear. What's been the knock on effect since that incident?"

"Well, we've had some really horrible arguments, he hasn't touched me since that night-"

"I touch you", Rick frowned as he looked at his wife beside him on the couch.

"Only when I touch you. Otherwise, he has stopped initiating it", She corrected, "And he doesn't even talk to me in the same way anymore"

Aaron nodded as he turned his attentions to Rick, "And Rick? Would you agree with that?"

He shrugged, "Sounds about right"

"Okay, so the arguments, are they centred around this particular incident or do they branch off to other things?"

"It was mainly about what happened. Of course it hurt him, and when he's hurt he has a tendency to hit out at me-"

"I do not", Rick looked at her again.

"Yes, you do. You start to ask me these crazy questions, and it's not nice being on the receiving end of that"

"What kind of questions?", Aaron quizzed.

Michonne huffed as she went through the list, "If I was excited that my ex was in town, If I wanted to talk to him, how do I feel about him, if I like getting attention from other guys… things like that"

"And are these questions you genuinely want the answer to?", Aaron looked to Rick.

Rick pursed his lips as he thought, "Yes and no"

"So even though you're asking her those things, it's really something you don't want the answer to, but at the same time, you do?"

He stared at Aaron, choking out a "Sure"

"I actually think that's a very natural way to behave when you're hurt. You're battling with yourself as well as Michonne because of possible insecurities and fears you have in regard to her and previous lovers. It's easier to lash out at someone than to confront the underlying problem."

Rick clenched his jaw, "Can we move on now?"

Aaron looked as if he was tempted to roll his eyes, "Okay so, the arguments have been horrible and...you don't initiate contact between the two of you anymore?"

"I still touch her. I don't feel like it's only when she touches me though", Rick admitted.

Michonne shook her head, "No, It is. I know it is. I used to have to fight him off with a stick, and now? Nothing. Nothing at all. And I understand why, I think he's still reliving that moment in his head a lot".

"That's a very good point, Michonne. Could you agree with that Rick?", Aaron probed.

He exhaled slowly as he threw his hands up, "I guess I can. It doesn't help that I know she's sees him on a daily basis"

"He's our daughter's school teacher", Michonne crossed her arms over her chest.

"Ah! So that's adding to the tension between the two of you?"

"It is, but it shouldn't because I don't care about him. I stopped caring about him so long ago, but I've always felt incredibly guilty for how things may have looked after we broke up, because I started dating Rick right after, and it was soon enough for it to look like I left Mike for Rick, but it didn't happen like that. I wanted to be single for a while after that relationship but then Rick turned up and…", She sighed, "That was it for me."

"I see. So Rick, are you worried that Michonne still has feelings for the ex?"

Rick nearly groaned, "It's not somethan' I want to think about"

"He does think about it though, and he doesn't believe that I love him", Michonne stared at Rick.

He frowned at her for a second time, wondering where all her assumptions came from, "What the hell Michonne?"

"It's true! You don't believe I love you. I don't know if it's because I don't say it enough or show it enough, but he doesn't feel anywhere near as secure with me as I do with him"

"That is a very big and brutally honest claim", Aaron scooted forward in his seat, "What would you say to that Rick? Because this is on par with what we had discussed previously. You exhibit your affections differently, and do you think it's possible that Michonne doesn't give you the reassurance that you give her?"

Rick blinked at him, "It's possible"

"And what could she do to make you feel as secure as she does?"

He shifted uncomfortably in his seat, "I don't know. She's already done so much. She bought me a car, she planned our whole wedding right under my nose"

"You're getting better at the grand gestures, I see", Aaron commented to Michonne.

"I am", She smiled, "But even then he doesn't believe he deserves them. It's like I deserve everything and he deserves nothing, and I hate that he feels that way"

"Because I'm fine, I don't need all that", Rick shrugged.

"And what makes you think she does?", Aaron clasped his hands together on in front of him, as if he was waiting for important news.

"Because she's just…", He exhaled through his nose, "She's always been there for me and the kids… Especially Carl. Their relationship is one of my pride and joy... I don't even know where I'd be without her because she's been my back bone for all these years. She cares so much about the people around her and I've seen how far she'd go to look after them… she's just my definition of perfect. Perfect mother and perfect wife"

Michonne peered at him through adoring eyes, "Really?"

"Of course", He affirmed, holding his hand out to her.

"You're perfect to me, too", She sniffed, letting her hand rest in his.

He smirked shyly as he his fingers curled around hers, "You don't need to say all that"

"Yes I do", She stressed firmly, "You think you don't deserve these things but you deserve so much more, and I'm sorry if I haven't made you feel anywhere near as safe as you've made me"

"You've both really got me going here", Aaron muttered, grabbing a tissue from the box on the coffee table.

Michonne carried on, "I promise to make sure that you end everyday feeling as loved as I do by you"

A bashful smile spread across his lips, "You won't have to do much"

She gave his hand a little squeeze, "I do".

Aaron watched the display with a warm eyes, "See, this is why I got into this line of work-"

Rick grunted as he turned his attentions back to the man, "You sure it's not because you get to charge people a small fortune to argue in front of you?"

"Hey!", Michonne smacked his leg, "You stop that!"

"It's not about the money, Rick", Aaron corrected with a raised hand.

Rick squinted at him, "That's a damn lie. You have a new BMW out front with custom plates-"

"Rick! Cut it out", Michonne warned.

"We should tell him about the cruise we went on. He'd buy a crate load of the water"

Michonne bit back a smile, "Rick-"

He sniggered when he noticed her amusement, "You know he'd order the steak up to his room everyday"

She couldn't hold back her cackle, and Rick glowed as he watched her laugh.

Aaron sighed as he gave them both an unimpressed look, "Well, let's move on".

…

"Did you tell Sasha about this damn counselling thang?"

Rick looked up from his desk at Daryl, confused, "No? Michonne probably did, why? She wants you two to go?"

"Of course she does!", the man barked as he threw himself down in the seat, "I don't even know why!"

Rick sat back with a huff, "You sure about that?"

Daryl squinted at him, "What the hell do you mean are you sure about that? Did she tell you somethan '?"

"She didn't tell me anythan'. You'd be surprised what can come up in those sessions though"

The other man growled, "So what, you're a counsellor now too?"

Rick chuckled, "I'm just letting you know, don't be surprised if she brings up somethan', that you haven't even thought twice about. And be prepared to get angry and not be able to do anythan' but talk about it"

Daryl bit his nails as he stared at Rick, "I thought 'Chonne liked me. Why would she do this?"

"She loves you, but she loves to talk more, and she likes it when other people talk as well", Rick snickered, picking up a sheet of paper, "I went with Leon over to the jewellery store today, and I noticed the fire escape. You know you can climb right up to the roof from it?"

"Yeah?"

"Well I asked for surveillance from the stores on the whole street. Whoever did it could have ran along the rooftops or somethan, came out somewhere else"

"You think we got that kind of cat burglar around here?"

"It's possible. It would have been the best escape route when you think about it; climb up the roof and climb down a couple stores down, because we would only check the neighbouring stores cameras, and whoever did it, figured that out", Rick sighed as he grabbed a pen, "And I need to find out if Andrea tracked down that woman yet… hopefully we can check her out before she does-"

"Hey we got a dispute down at the elementary school!", Rosita announced as she ran past the office door with Shane, "Carol just called it in!"

Rick and Daryl glanced at each other for only a brief second before shooting out of their seats. They raced through the department, dodging anyone in their way, before running out of the building to join the others.

"What happened?!", Rick yelled to Rosita as they reached the squad cars.

"Angry parent attacking teachers!", She called back, climbing into the car beside there's.

Rick and Daryl quickly got into the vehicle, and followed Rosita out the parking lot. Rick felt some ease knowing that it wasn't an attack on the children themselves, but he also knew the situation could change at any moment.

"Who do you think it is?", Daryl asked, holding on to the dashboard as Rick sped through the streets.

"I don't have a damn clue", Rick rasped, "I just hope they have some kind of protocol for these things"

"I doubt it. Parents get mad and all that, but when's the last time you heard one of 'em attacked a teacher?"

"Michonne?", He scoffed, as if it was the most obvious answer.

"That was verbally"

"She was only seconds away from hitting that woman"

"Didn't she forget Carl at the park on their little trip? You telling me you weren't mad?"

"Course I was mad, but that was when Carl was going through a phase of running off. As soon as we got to the park, it was like throwing a ball and taking a puppy off the leash"

Daryl snickered at him, "Lily's only going through that now. I told her it's a little late for all that"

Rick smiled at the mention of his goddaughter, "She's a little adventurer. I promised her I'd take her back up to the woods by my mom's again"

"Yeah? _Go ahead_. She needs to burn some if that energy off"

They arrived at the elementary school, where a few members of staff where stood outside, looking frightened. Rick marched towards them first, "What's happened?"

A dark haired women stepped forward first, "One of the parents, he came in and got into a fight with the new teacher"

"The kids?", Daryl asked from beside him.

"They're having their lunch in the cafeteria, they're all fine"

"I'll take you inside", another teacher volunteered, stepping towards the doors.

The officers followed her inside, where Rick immediately noticed images on the wall had been ripped off and thrown to the floor, strewn across the entrance.

"Who's the parent?", Rick probed.

"I think his name's Pete Anderson?", the small dark skinned woman answered.

Rick and Daryl both groaned at the mention of the other man's name, "Great"

"Who's that?", Shane quizzed from behind.

"An abusive alcoholic, he used to be a doctor but now he just drinks"

"The teacher he attacked only just started out here", the woman informed.

Rick almost groaned again, "Let me guess, _Mike_?"

"That's the one".

"Of course it is", He muttered under his breath.

They were led to the teachers' lounge first, where two teachers were stood next to the man that Rick quickly recognised as Mike. He realised he had to put aside all feelings of hatred he felt for the man to deal with the situation.

"Can you take Rosita and Shane to Mr Anderson please?", Rick asked the staff member who led them.

"Sure, right this way"

Rick discreetly took in a long, calming breath, "Mike, is it?"

"That's right", He nodded, holding an ice pack to his hand. He had a small cut under his eye which was starting to swell, and his clothes were dishevelled, but he still looked to be in good spirits.

"I'm Sheriff Grimes, that's Dixon", Rick introduced, his eyes taking in every inch of the man's face, "Can you tell us what happened?"

"Grimes? You're Judith's father?", Mike's eyebrows shot up.

He narrowed his eyes him, "Yeah, why?"

"I spoke to Michonne when she came to pick her up, about Judith calling Sam a 'Jackass'"

Rick ignored Daryl's snort of laughter behind him, "Yeah, She told me"

"Well I guess Sam must of asked his grandmother what is meant or something, and she mentioned it to his father, he came in here swearing all over the place, asking who taught his son that word… which is ironic since his language was even more colourful", Mike shook his head in annoyance, "He stank of alcohol, ripping down the pictures off the wall, and threatening everyone, so I tried to escort him out, but he punched me. So I punched him back and we got into it"

Rick slowly nodded as he looked past the man, "Alright. No kids around?"

"No. None, but they'll be coming back in soon"

"We're gonna have someone take down your version of events, take some pictures of your injuries"

"Will that take long? It's just the kids are excited to get started on writing their first letters today. We plan to post them at the end of the week"

Rick stared at him.

"We can go in and keep them entertained for a little while. Can't we?", Daryl suggested, "What do you need them to do? Just start writing a letter to who they want?"

"Yes. A family member, a friend", Mike explained, "Everything's already out on the desks so… I mean I'm sure Carol won't mind if you go in while I sort all this out"

Daryl patted Rick on the back, "Yeah, my niece would love to see her daddy come in and teach the class for a little while"

Rick smirked as he shook his head, "Alright, just wait here, we're gonna send a deputy in to get all that down"

"My mom taught you guy's right? She said that some of her old students work at the police department now?", Mike waved a finger between them.

He nodded, "Yeah she did"

"Crazy ain't it", Daryl remarked slyly, "It's a small town"

As soon as the two of them left the lounge, Daryl began to chuckle, "You remember when we followed him all those years ago?"

"Of course I do", Rick hissed, "But let's just keep that one between the two of us"

They managed to find Shane and Rosita in an office with a very bruised and battered Pete Anderson, which left Rick slightly impressed, and glad that someone stopped him before he causes irreparable damage. After helping to put the man in the back of a squad car, and having a brief discussion with Carol, Rick and Daryl made their way to the third grade classroom, where the students had already been settled in after their lunch break.

When Rick opened the door and stepped in, he heard a little excited gasp from his daughter, who was sat near the front of the room.

"Class, this is Officer Grimes and Officer Dixon! They're here to help us start off our letters!", The teacher's assistant announced.

"Hey there", Rick greeted, joining the assistant by the desk. The students all looked at them with wide, and slightly confused expressions, "Now some of you already know me as Judith's dad, but today me and my partner are here to help you out while Mike tends to a few things. So do y'all already know who you wanna write to?"

The children all chimed, "Yeah!"

"Alright then, so why don't you all get started and we'll come around and see how you're doing"

The sound of ruffling papers could be heard as the kids began to ready themselves, all except Judith, who wore the largest smile Rick had ever seen.

"Hi daddy", She beamed as he crouched next to her desk.

"Hey sweetie, you alright?", His heart swelled with pride to see how happy she was.

"Yep. How come you're here?"

"Me and Uncle Daryl had to do some work for Carol, and now you have to get your work done too. Who you gonna write to?"

"Cousin Gerald, because he lives faraway"

"That's really sweet of you. I'm sure he'll love it, so you get started on that while daddy goes and checks on your friends, alright?"

"Okie doke"

"That's my girl"


	44. Chapter 44

**Chapter 44:**

 _'Just Get Over Here'_

"You would have so much more time to yourself in the mornings because you wouldn't have to drop me to school if I had my own car"

Michonne rolled her eyes up to meet her sons, "Oh, really?"

"Yes.", Carl affirmed, "And you wouldn't have to drop me anywhere anymore. I could even pick Judith up from school"

She stared at him with her best unimpressed expression, one that he had come to perfect himself.

"Can you at least think about it?", the teenager pleaded, leaning forward on the counter with his elbows, "Please?"

"No."

He groaned in a dramatic fashion, "But why? Sixteen is the perfect age to get a car?"

"Who told you that?", She smirked, her tone high with amusement, "I got my first car when I was nineteen, and your father had to work to buy his own car-"

"Okay, fine, how about this, you buy me a car and I'll work to pay if off. It would be like making car payments but instead I'll be paying you guys"

"Daddy!", Judith chirped in the hallway, alerting them of Rick's arrival home.

"Ask your father", Michonne instructed, looking back down at the papers in front of her.

Carl's shoulders fell, "You know he'll say 'no'"

"So you thought you'd ask me instead because you thought I'll just say 'yes'?"

"I asked you because you're the more level headed parent", the teen replied in a tone that suggested that that was the obvious answer.

She was flattered, "Aw, thank you. But no".

"Think about it, please?"

"Think about what?", Rick repeated, strolling into the kitchen.

"Carl would like a car for his sixteenth birthday", Michonne informed, looking at her husband to see his reaction.

He chuckled as he walked past the boy in question, "And I want an unlimited amount of funds for mine. See? It's nice to dream, ain't it?"

"Okay, but realistically, it's not like you can't afford to get me a car", Carl countered, "And I'm not even asking for an expensive one"

Rick raised his eyebrows at his son as he took bottle of water from the fridge, "Yeah? Alright. I'll make a deal with you"

"Yeah?", Carl's eyes lit up.

"I'll buy you a car for your sixteenth birthday if I don't have to shout at you for next five months"

"Deal!"

Michonne frowned at Rick, wondering what he was up to as he continued, "I mean it, I can't have a reason to shout at you at all. Not because you did somethan' stupid, not because you didn't tidy up, not because you dropped your sister-"

"Sweet. That's a deal", Carl nodded hurried.

"Yeah? Alright then. Deal"

"Yes!", He cheered, turning to leave the room, "Mickey is going to be so jealous when I tell him"

Rick stood next to Michonne, his eyes skimming over her work, "That's right, you go tell him son"

Michonne narrowed her eyes at him, "What are you-"

"Wait, watch this", He insisted, holding out a hand to stop her, before yelling, "Carl move your boots and your skateboard from the front door!"

"Oh my god! What?!", Carl cried out in the hallway, looking back to the kitchen with disbelief, "That's not even funny!"

Rick snickered as he looked back down at her, "But that was very fun"

"You're evil", She shook her head at him, "Why not just tell him 'no'?"

"Because I wanted to be creative. I'm sick of just saying 'no'...", He shrugged, picking up a sheet of paper as his smile began to face, "What's this?"

"Court date for Lori's case against us", She answered dryly, "I'm getting everything together for it"

"When did you get this?"

"Today at work. It was faxed over to me", She sighed as she turned back to her notes, wiggling the pen in between her fingers as she tried to get her mind back on track.

"I thought she would see sense after showing up Judith's birthday", Rick almost growled, dropping the paper back on the counter.

"She's fighting for what she thinks is 'Hers'", Michonne breathed, starting to write again.

"Not in this life, or any other life after that", He turned away from her, looking out the kitchen window, "I met Mike today"

Her gaze darted to him, "Yeah… Judith told me you were at her school? Something happened?"

"Pete Anderson caught wind that his son was called a Jackass. Attached Mike when he tried to stop him"

She couldn't help but hold back a chuckle, "Yeah, bet that went down well"

Rick's head whipped around to look at her again, "Yeah?"

She gave him an innocent shrug, "Mike used to take Taekwondo or something… he was really good at….that"

His expression grew serious.

"So, what? I can't say anything about him?", She huffed, slapping her pen down on the table.

"I don't wanna hear you talk about him", His face pinched with annoyance, "I don't care what he used to do, or what he was good at, or when he picked up the Nobel peace prize-"

"Fine! Sorry! I won't ever make a comment about him ever again", She threw her hands up in surrender, "Okay?"

His lip curled, but he did relent on his rant, "Fine"

"Okay.", She turned on the stool to face him, "Can I have a hug now, please?"

His head reeled back in surprise, "What?"

"I want a hug", She bit out, "Why do you have to act like that? If I ask for a hug then you should just give me one-"

"What have you done to deserve a hug?", He cocked his head at her as he leaned on the counter.

"Raised your children", She countered dryly.

"That's been a team effort-"

"Just get over here!", She demanded.

He sniggered as he stepped closer and wrapped his arms around her in a warm embrace, "You're the reason Judith's bossy"

"You are too", She sighed, resting her head on his chest. Nothing soothed her more than the feel of his strong arms around her, but there was something missing, "We haven't kissed in a week"

He stiffened, "I know"

She pulled back to look up at him, trying to gauge his mood, "Kiss me"

His eyes darted all over her face as he hesitated, "Michonne, I don't really think-"

"You don't want to kiss me?", saying it aloud brought her great sadness, "And you still don't want to touch me?"

"Stop saying that. I don't have a problem with touching you, obviously I don't, I'm touching you now-"

She pushed her hands away from her, "Because I had to ask! Are you disgusted with me or something, Rick?"

He groaned as he ran his hands over his face, "No, I'm not disgusted with you, Michonne-"

"Then why are you still so distant? We talked about this-"

"I know we did-"

"Then what else is going on for you to feel like you have to think about kissing me-"

"I don't know! I just feel like I can't!", he confessed, "It's like that side of us is just ruined for me. I hate to say that to you, but it is. I just can't go there with you right now"

Michonne felt like her heart was in her mouth, "It's ruined? The intimate side of our relationship is ruined for you? I ruined it for you?"

He bowed his head, resting one hand on the counter, "It's just not the same as before"

She stared at him with glistening eyes, beside herself with emotion. She had genuinely believed that they were moving on, past her blunder, but to learn that he couldn't be close with her left her feeling as if they had made no progress at all. She shook her head solemnly, gathering up her work from the counter.

"What are you doing?", He asked his eyes following her hands.

"I'm done for tonight", She lied, shoving them in her folder, "Dinners in the oven"

"Michonne-"

She hopped off the bar stool and stalked past him, feeling as if the temperature in the room was increasing with every passing second, "I'm just going to step out for a while"

"What?", His heavy footsteps followed her.

She didn't answer him, instead she headed over to the side table in the hallway and grabbed her keys.

Rick easily caught up with her, taking hold of her arm before she could go any further, "What did you just say?"

"I'm going out for a little while-"

"Where? What for?", He cocked his head at her.

"I just need to go for a drive or something, Rick!", She hissed, "I don't want to stay here right now!"

"Because of what I said?"

"Yes! That's exactly why! So can you let me go so I can just get out of this house!"

He still held her, "I don't like that, Michonne. I don't like that at all"

"Well I don't like hearing that my husband doesn't want to be close to me anymore", She bit back, "So let go of me"

"I never said that", He forced sternly, closing in on her, "It's just I can't help it-"

"What are you doing?", Judith questioned, standing in the living room doorway. Her eyes scanned over both of them, as a confused expression covered her face.

As soon as Michonne felt Rick's grip loosen, she pulled out of his hold, "Nothing, go sit down honey, mama will be back in a little while"

Judith eyes lit up, "Are you going out? Can I come? Where are we going?"

Michonne inwardly groaned, but knew her daughter would never forgive her for leaving without her, "Yeah, sure, come on"

"Michonne", Rick's voice dropped to a dangerously low level, "Don't".

"We're going on a drive and that's it", She insisted, watching Judith slip her shoes on, "If she wants to come then she can come-"

"She's got school in the morning-"

"I'm not going to keep her out all hours of the night and you _know_ that I won't", She yanked open the door, "Come on, honey"

"Bye daddy!", Judith chirped, sprinting out the home and down the porch steps, and Michonne closed the door after her.

…

"Hi Aunt Sasha!"

"Hi Judy!", Sasha greeted, stepping aside to let the little girl in, "You okay?"

"Yep", The little girl stopped in the hallway, looking towards the stairs.

"Lily's in the backyard with your uncle, they're probably trying to build a cabin or something".

Judith bolted towards the back of the house, while Michonne huffed, "Sorry to just turn up-"

"Don't be silly, what's the matter?", Sasha waved her hand towards the living room.

Michonne kicked off her flip flops and strolled into the room, dropping down in the wide blue couch with a pout, "I repulse my husband"

Sasha squinted as she joined her, "Excuse me?"

"He doesn't want to touch me, and he doesn't want to kiss me and he said I ruined the intimacy between us"

Her friend eyed her strangely, "Rick? Your _husband_ Rick?"

"Yes."

"...The same Rick that can't keep his hands off you-"

"He can now! He doesn't even try! The last time he voluntarily touched me was when we were in the session. I just had to ask him for a hug when he got home from work and even then, I could see he didn't want to"

Sasha seemed to mull over her reply, "Maybe you should give him time to get over it all. It's probably still raw for him"

Michonne sat back feeling defeated, "We were so happy before"

"You will be again. You've been through worse", Sasha rubbed her arm soothingly, "And you can understand how bruised his ego must be, especially when he's such a…"

"...Selfless lover?"

"I was going say a _freak_ , but that works too"

Michonne chortled, "It does work too"

Daryl stepped cautiously into the room, "What's going on here? How you doing 'Chonne?"

"Hey Dixon, just stopping by", She gave him a small smile and a wave.

The man slowly nodded, stuffing his hands inside his pockets awkwardly.

Michonne sighed, "He called you didn't he?"

"He just wanted to know if you came here", He admitted.

"He wants to know where I am but he doesn't want any kind of physical contact with me", She chuckled in a disbelieving manor, throwing her hands up.

"Alright, time for me to go", Daryl muttered as he turned and left the room.

Sasha sat back beside her, "We're going to try the counselling, by the way"

"Yeah?", Michonne tilted her head at her, "What's he think about it?"

Her friend rolled her eyes, "You don't even need to ask"

"He's not happy then… I think it's good though. It's helped us a lot, having someone there to explain your history to helps you identify what went wrong, or what you didn't understand"

"I hope it works. Trying to get Daryl to talk is like pulling teeth, and even when he does talk it's just grunts and shrugs. He doesn't understand how that can come across as unwelcoming"

"Of course not", Michonne sniggered sarcastically.

"It's fine when he's like that with you guys because everyone knows how he is, but otherwise I feel like I have to explain to my family that that's just him"

"I think that's why he and Rick get along so well. I don't even think they even talk when they're together, they probably just grunt-"

"Ugh, yeah?", Sasha growled and shrugged her shoulders as she mimicked her husband.

"Ugh, damn, ugh", Michonne did the same, cocking her head in a way that Rick often did.

"Ugh, bunch of assholes"

"Ugh, I don't like _this,_ Ugh, I don't like _that"_

The woman leaned into each other as they cackled wildly, proud of themselves for their imitations. Sasha tapped her on her leg as their laughter died down, "Seriously though. Just give him time. I imagine it's not easy with Mike living here now. I know they saw him today"

"I know, but I think if he saw me and Mike together then he'd see that there is nothing to worry about. We're civil, we catch up a little but otherwise it's just a quick conversation and we keep it moving", Michonne crossed her arms over her chest as she looked around the room.

"You think he'll come along to their high school reunion?"

She frowned at Sasha, "What for? Mike didn't go to school here?"

"No, but his mom was their teacher. I imagine she'd want to bring him along since he's-"

"Oh my god, Mrs Hanson's Mike's mom", Michonne gasped as it dawned on her.

"Yeah?"

"Mrs Hanson taught Rick. That's who Rick had a crush on in high school"

Sasha covered her mouth as she giggled, "Aww, really?"

"Oh my god", Michonne squinted as she grew annoyed, "This whole time…"

"What? That's cute-"

"She looks like me, Sasha. Well, I guess I look like her since she's older. Even Mike and his dad used to joke that I look more like her child than he does"

Sasha's eyebrows shot up, "Really?"

"That's creepy, right? That he got with someone that looked like his crush from high school? Like I'm some kind of fill in?"

"It is a little creepy but, maybe she just showed him the type of woman he knew he wanted to be with. Tyrese first wife and his second wife look similar… in fact they could probably pass for sisters… when I pointed it out to him, he didn't even realise. I think he freaked out actually…"

"Is there a upside to that?"

Sasha shrugged, "They're still married so he wasn't _that_ freaked out"

Michonne bit back a chuckle, "Great. That's a great story"

"I've always wondered what kind of girl Daryl would go for if we weren't together…", the woman tipped her head as she thought.

"You've been together the longest out of all of us, so I couldn't even imagine it"

"Yeah, but he did have a girlfriend before me. I think she was older? I don't know. I've always been curious"

"Really? I don't think I could think of anything worse"

"Yeah, but the difference is you've met women that Rick has dated, or you've at least seen them around"

"You know that psycho said that he used to warn guys off me?", Michonne's brows knitted together as she remembered what Rick had confessed.

"Yeah. Daryl used to come home and tell me", Sasha nudged her as she laughed, "He reminded me about the time they followed Mike today"

Michonne stared at her with wide eyes, "What?"

Sasha's smile fell, "Oh, you didn't know about that? Well… it's not even a funny story, I don't even know why I laughed-"

"When was this?"

"I'm not completely sure but I think around the time that you and Rick were getting to know each other I think? He said they saw you talking to him once, so they just followed him"

Michonne dropped her head back against the couch, "God. I'm not even surprised anymore"

"Daryl's the one you need to talk to. He has all the juicy stories", Sasha grinned, "And Shane. I talked to him at Judy's birthday. He seems nice enough"

"Yeah, he is. He tries his best, I can't fault him for that"

"Is Lori still going through with everything?"

"Yep. The court dates coming up, and I was preparing for it earlier…"

"You want to leave the kids with us when it starts? Does Carl have to go?"

"If it's not too much trouble? Carl won't have to go for the first one"

"It's fine, we're glad to help. I know it's probably not going to be easy… how does Carl feel about it?"

"He knows but, we haven't spoken about it since we told him, so we're going to have to bring it up again… I think it's probably been on his mind anyway"

"Hopefully he's not worrying about it though. That's the last thing you guys need"

"Yeah", Michonne sighed, massaging her temples with her fingers.

"Mommy, daddy started a fire again!", Lily announced excitedly as she ran into the room, "Hi Aunt Mimi!"

"Hey Lily pad!", Michonne cheered, though she quickly looked to Sasha with slight panic, _"Again?"_

 _"Again",_ Sasha groaned as she stood up, "Come on, I'll probably need some help"


	45. Chapter 45

**Chapter 45:**

 _'I'm crazy about you...'_

"So since it's just the two of us, I think this would be the perfect time for us to talk about all the benefits of getting me a car…"

Rick tore his gaze away from the television to look at his son, "Excuse me?"

"The benefits of getting me a car. I've put a lot of thoughts in to this…"

Rick's face contorted from confusion, "How would an extra bill be beneficial to me? Please, tell me that?"

"Think of it as investment", Carl grinned at him from the other side of the couch.

"An investment, huh? So if I buy you a car, you're getting a job and you're moving out, right? I'd easily save hundreds of dollars if I'm not feeding you anymore, so if that's the kind of return I'm getting out of this, then sign me up."

Carl's smile fell, "Mom's always said that I don't have to move out if I don't want to"

Rick's eyebrows popped up as he tilted his head at his son, "Is that right? You think I wanna walk into your room one night thinking you're asleep, when really you snuck a girl in again and you got your little thang out-"

Carl groaned as he sunk lower in his seat, "Oh my god! Dad, stop!"

"You think I forgot about all that? And let me just tell you, that if you ever decide to act that stupid again, you better hope someone shoots me a third time before I can get to you", He warned as he squinted at his son.

"That won't be a problem because I've learned my lesson! It was stupid and I just wasn't thinking-"

"Damn right you weren't thinking. You nearly broke your mother's heart, and I don't know how many times I have to tell you, that you never-"

"Make mom cry", Carl sighed, "I know. It won't happen again. Promise."

"Good. You're lucky I'm not as strict as your grandfather was, because that would have had a different ending entirely"

His son started to smile, "You weren't exactly an saint, dad"

He glanced at the teenager from the corner of his eye, "Never said I was"

"In fact, mom told me that you had to buy your first car, and judging from some of the stories that you've told me, it makes sense why grandma and grandpa didn't buy you one. So in comparison to you, I'm like an angel-"

"If you're an angel then you don't need a car. Start working on growing those wings, boy"

The teenager groaned, "I bet if Judith asked for a car-"

"You want one like your sisters? I'll get you one of those if you like", Rick chuckled evilly, "You get a little licence and everythan'-"

"You're not funny, dad", Carl deadpanned.

"That's an outright lie. I am _hilarious"_

"You have dad jokes"

Rick frowned at the teenager as his smile vanished, "Dad jokes? I do not have dad jokes. Your sister thinks I'm funny"

Carl scoffed, "Judith also thinks Uncle _Glenn_ is funny".

Rick wasn't sure how offended he should be by his son's remark, "Your mother thinks I'm funny"

"Yeah, but that's different. She actually likes you."

"She _actually_ likes me? What's that supposed to mean?"

"Uncle Daryl told me once, if a girl laughs at your jokes then she really likes you. And obviously she married you. Twice."

"I think I prefer you getting advice from your uncle than I prefer Judith getting advice from her godmother", Rick sighed as he shook his head.

"Aunt Drea says some funny things", Carl snickered.

"I'd rather you laugh at her than take her seriously"

"Did you see her trying to dance at Judith's party?"

"It's didn't think she was dancing at first. I thought she was choking on somethan'"

The father and son duo chuckled heartily together, and Ricks mind slowly travelled to Lori as he thought of his daughter's birthday celebration. His laughter died down, "There was somethan' I needed to talk to you about… your mother wanted to talk about it with you too, but I don't want her getting anymore worked up about it-"

"What?", the teenager straightened up as he grew concerned.

"This case, with Lori, it's coming up soon. Very soon", He watched his son's reaction closely, "And we don't know if the judge just wants to hear it out, but the chances are still slim that it won't get far… either way, your mother's preparing for it. She's doing everythan' she can to make sure it doesn't get anywhere, alright?"

Carl's expression became serious, "This is still happening? I thought mom talked to her-"

"She's not dropping it, but we'll stop her no matter what, so don't think anythan' is changing over here", Rick could see his son battling with the idea, clearly angered by the information, "Hey, I mean it. We're going to handle this."

"I know you will… but I think it sucks that you even have to deal with this… you should have let me talk to her so I could tell her-"

"Carl, I know what you're gonna say, and I mean it when I tell you, it wouldn't have made any difference. She thinks we've turned you against her, and she's hell bent on trying to show you a different reality, one where she's completely innocent and your mother's some kind of villain", Rick bit his tongue to stop himself from saying anything further, "My point is, we're gonna be fine, alright? You won't be left out of this, we'll let you know what's going on and I need to you to make sure that you talk to us about how you're feeling about it all"

Carl slowly nodded, his gaze sailing back and forth across the room, "But what about mom? She shouldn't even be dealing with this sort of thing right now?"

"No, she shouldn't. There's a lot of thangs that she shouldn't be dealing with right now…", Rick bit his lip when feelings of guilt crept up on him, "But she wouldn't let anyone else take this on. She's great at what she does, and I don't think anyone could do a better job than her"

"Yeah…", Carl appeared to relax, his hard expression beginning to soften, "It's true"

"It is…", He turned his attentions back to the television, hoping to brighten the mood again, "Now, what's this? The usual show?"

His son rolled his eyes with obvious disappointment, "The Regular Show, dad. Regular"

Rick smirked to himself, "Well, sorry".

…

"A marshmallow? You want to be a marshmallow?"

"Yep."

Rick peered at his daughter through the rear view mirror, "Judith… sweetie, that's not really scary now, is it? It's not really a character either?"

"I want to be a marshmallow, daddy", Judith repeated, staring at the side of his face from the backseat, "You said I can be anything I want"

"You can be anythan', but can't you be somethan' I can actually find-"

"We'll just get it made for her. A white sheet and some pillows should do the trick", Michonne announced, her eyes on her phone in the front seat.

Rick glanced at her, "You're talking to me now?"

Her gaze shot over to him, "Don't."

"So I can be a marshmallow?!", Judith asked excitedly.

"Of course you can, sweetie"

"Yes!", the little girl punched the air with both fists, one after the other, "Are you going to dress up too, mama?"

"Sure honey, what do you think mama should be this Halloween?", His wife looked back to see her daughter.

"Uh… A bumble bee?"

Michonne chuckled, "Because I like honey?"

Judith nodded.

"Alright, then Mama's going to be bumblebee…What should your daddy be?"

"Daddy said he's not coming trick or treating this time?"

"Well, he is now. Go on, pick a costume for him", His wife's tone was a challenging one, though she wore a smile for their daughter to see.

"I want daddy to be… a cowboy! Like Woody, he was a sheriff too."

Rick exhaled slowly, "You don't really want daddy to dress up-"

"Yes I do", Judith ejected dryly, "You have to daddy. Mama said so"

"So daddy will be a cowboy, and mama can be a bumble bee, and our little marshmallow will be over the moon", Michonne turned back to the front of the vehicle with an evil grin.

"You don't even need a costume, I can see your horns from here", Rick rasped at her quietly.

"It's a good thing you don't want to touch me then, isn't it? We wouldn't want you to lose an eye or something", She countered flatly as she scowled at him.

He groaned as they pulled up in front of the elementary school, holding back on another remark for his wife, "Alright sweetie, you have a good day, alright?"

"Bye daddy!", Judith chimed, unfastening her seatbelt before climbing out the truck.

Rick watched Michonne do the same as their daughter, waiting for both doors to close, then growling aloud when he was alone.

His wife hadn't said a word to him when she returned home the previous night, leaving Rick feeling awful for the fact that she left in the first place. He realised he should have been softer in his delivery, but he couldn't help how he felt. It was as if there was a brick wall between them, and every time he felt the urge to kiss or caress her, he just couldn't. A part of him was sure that it was due to fear. Fear of making love to her again, and hearing that man's name escape her lips a second time. If such a thing were to happen again, it would devastate him.

When she returned to the vehicle after dropping Judith off in the school, he waited until she was saturated to speak, "We need to talk, Michonne"

Her eyes slid over to him, "You're going to make me late for work"

"I'm sure Andrea can cope for a few minutes on her own", He scoffed.

"Rick, I get it, I revolt you right now", She fumed, "So let's just drop it-"

"Stop saying thangs like that to me, Michonne. That's not how I feel towards you and you know it"

"Well you might as well have said that", She muttered, rolling her eyes away from him.

"But I didn't. I'm not thinking like that at all", He issued firmly, his eyes studying the side of her face, "I'm sorry if I've made you feel like that's the case, but it's not. You know I'm crazy about you, and I always will be"

He didn't miss the slight quiver in her bottom lip, as she crossed her arms over her chest, "Yeah. Sure."

"Don't do that. Look at me, now please?", He urged, holding his hand out to her.

She peered down at his hand for a short time, before reluctantly dropping her hand in his, and he wrapped his fingers over hers. Her eyes finally found his.

"I'm sorry", His gravelly voice issued in a whisper, "I wasn't trying to upset you last night, and I don't want to be the reason you feel like you can't stay in your own home"

"I know", She sniffed with glimmering eyes.

"I don't want thangs to stay like this-"

"Hey! Can you drive on, Grimes! You're holding up the damn queue!", An angry parent yelled from beside the driver's side window.

Rick inhaled slowly, still facing Michonne, "Hold on a minute".

He removed his seatbelt and pushed open the door as his expression turned dark. The parent took a step back, but still kept his hands at his sides, and his chest puffed out.

Rick looked him from head to toe, "What did you just say to me?"

"I said, Grimes, you need to-"

"First of all", Rick closed the space between them as he stared the man down, "That's Sheriff Grimes to you, and you better remember that the next time you decide to approach me"

The father's lips snapped together as his chest deflated.

"Secondly, you are in front a school, which means there are little kids around, and the only ones that should be yelling like that, are them. Thirdly, it's _because_ we're in front of a school, that you're still standing right now. You understand me?"

The man huffed, muttering something unintelligible under his breath as he stalked back to his vehicle.

Rick watched him for a moment before returning to his own. He ignored Michonne's slightly unimpressed stare as he put his seatbelt back on and took her hand in his again, "As I was saying, I don't want thangs to stay like this. Don't think that I do. Alright?"

She nodded, her eyes scanning over his face as she answered softly, "Yeah".

"Good", He stroked his thumb over hers, "Alright, let's leave before I have to hit someone"

...

"You wanna know what I noticed the other day, when 'Chonne and Judith came over? I was out in the yard, and the damn bush caught on fire, and I looked back to see where the girls where-"

"You set fire to a plant?", Rick narrowed his eyes at Daryl as they climbed into the squad car outside the police department.

"I was trying to burn out some of the shrubs we got out there", Daryl shrugged, as if the answer was an obvious one, "Anyway, it started to spread so I looked back to check where the girls were, and when I saw them, I swear, they just gave each other a look that said 'shit', before Lily went and got her mama"

Laughter burst from Rick's lips, "They knew you were up to no good, that's why"

"They got their own language going. I've seen them give each other quick little looks… and I've noticed that they don't talk much when they're playing. It's like they know what they're doing so they just get on with it"

"Yeah, I don't doubt that at all", Rick pulled out of the departments parking lot, "I imagine Ally's gonna be in on it soon. She's working on it"

"She is. Maggie told Sasha that they wanna have a Halloween party for the kids, I don't know if they still wanna do it but she'll probably tell y'all about it if she does"

"Yeah? That sounds like a good idea, once I find Judith her marshmallow costume", He exhaled tiredly.

"A marshmallow?", Daryl's tone suggested that he was highly amused, "You're gonna have to get that made or somethan' cause that ain't a usual one"

"You're telling me. I know she loves marshmallows, but I never thought that much"

"She's been trying to eat her weight in them for years. Lily said she wanted to be a bear"

Rick snickered, "I can already picture her as one. You shouldn't have a problem finding that"

"I better not", Daryl leaned to the left to fish a piece of paper out of his pocket, "Alright so, we're starting off on the stores from the end of the street right? Work our way up that way"

"Yeah. The jewellery store is right in the middle, so we're bound to find somethan' on somebody's surveillance"

"Hope we do. I told you, most of them don't keep up to date with that stuff. They think a town like this shouldn't have problems like that, 'cause everyone knows each other"

"Well they need to start protecting themselves, and this should be a lesson to them all. Just because everybody knows everybody, doesn't mean that they can trust everyone"

"I hear that. Hopefully we get somethan' though. I feel like we're looking for a ghost"

"I said it before and I'll say it again, the person we're looking for knows what they're doing… and it's got me wondering if it's even someone from around here. They said they ain't been robbed before, and all of a sudden they are, and it doesn't look like it's done by someone desperate, or some kind of amateur, this person's been doing this for a while. Think about the few robberies with had around here, even the repeat offenders can't leave a clean scene like that"

"...I hear you", Daryl slowly nodded, "We'll figure it out"

"Yeah. We will".

The men sat in a comfortable silence for some time, both peering out the windshield with narrowed eyes, before Daryl announced, "You know Sasha wants to open up a little bakery?"

Rick glanced at him, "Yeah?"

"Yeah, man. She's serious about it too."

"How much is that gonna cost to start up?"

"A lot. And she can't be the only one back there making brownies and cakes either, she's gonna need people"

"Why doesn't she just start off small? Taking orders from home? Hell, I'd order the first batch. Judith would order the second"

The other man let out a throaty chuckle, "I know. She's great at 'em"

"If Michonne could bake like that, I'd box them up and sell them too"

Daryl snuck a glance at Rick, "So did you and 'Chonne talk it out? Y'all playing nice now?"

He growled as he turned on to the designated street, "Almost… we're both just stubborn. And to top it all off, she's getting to stage in her pregnancy where she's a little more emotional. I feel like I catch her wanting to cry more than she usually does, and I can't stand it"

"Just let her cool down on her own while you cool down yourself."

"...I know I should but… it's easier said than done", Rick squinted out the windshield as he looked for a parking space.

"I never said anythan' about it being easy- What in the hell?", Daryl leaned forward as he peered out his window, "Aye, Carl has school today, right?"

"Yeah, why?", Rick frowned as he navigated the vehicle into an available spot.

"Well, does he know that?"

He looked in the direction that his friend was facing, slightly confused, when his gaze trailed over his shoulder, and he saw the teenager in question, gliding by on his skateboard on the other side of the street, "That's my son, ain't it?"

"It sure is. Where's he even going?"

"It doesn't matter where he's going. He just needs to enjoy the last minute of his life before I take it from him-", Rick muttered as he unfastened his seat belt.

"Nah man, look", Daryl pointed toward the windshield, and Rick's eyes widened as he watched his son jump off his skateboard, looking either side of him before he stepped into the hardware store, "What's he need in there?"

Rage surged through Rick as clenched his jaw, shoving open the car door when he growled, "Lori works there".


	46. Chapter 46

**Chapter 46:**

 _'I need you to be a better man than me'_

Carl stood at the counter in the hardware store, looking his birth mother straight in her eyes. She seemed shocked to see him, her brown eyes trailing all over his face curiously, her lips almost pursed as she waited for him to speak.

"I just came here to tell you to leave my family alone", Carl announced coldly, "I get that you might feel as if you deserve a second chance with me or my dad or whatever, but it's not going to happen. I don't want that. He doesn't want that, and what you're doing isn't going to change that"

Lori's mouth hung open for a second, before she shook her head, trying to gather her thoughts, "Wait just a minute, I don't know what you've been told but I'm not after your family-"

Carl had no interest in what she had to say, "Do you want to know why I'm not interested in talking to you?"

Her eyes widened at his bluntness.

"Because I stopped caring a long time ago, but when you came back, it brought up all these things… all this anger I had towards you… and it made me miserable. Now when I think about you, I feel miserable, and I preferred when I felt nothing"

Lori barely even blinked.

"I was trying to learn to forgive you for everything, because I didn't want to feel the way I did, but now? Now, I'm back at square one. I feel as though you're still the same selfish person I thought you were when I was growing up. And I thought that because of you, not because of my mom, and not because of my dad, but because of you. What you're doing now is for you, not me. If you really and truly cared about me, then the last thing you would do is try to come between me and my family. Especially me and my mom"

Lori shook her head a second time, "I'm not trying to come between you all, I just want a chance to show you that I'm not the person you think I am-"

"If you're not that person, then stop what you're doing. Call this whole thing off"

She frowned at him, "It's not that simple-"

"Carl!"

The hairs on the back of Carl's neck stood to attention when he heard his father's voice. He didn't even want to turn around to face him, but he did, very slowly.

His father marched up to him with thunder in his eyes, and his Uncle Daryl not far behind him, "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Carl slowly inhaled, "I know what you said-"

"Do you?! Because look where you're standing! Look where you are, right now! If you knew what I said then you wouldn't be here now, would you?!"

The teen didn't dare answer the question.

"He came to talk to me", Lori informed, standing up straighter, "He's allowed to do that, Rick"

Carl looked to the woman with confusion, wondering if she had lost her mind.

His father's eyes darted over to her, though he still spoke to his son, "Carl, go with your Uncle"

The teen mentally prepared himself to have his father's eyes back on him, "Dad, I do want to talk to her"

The older Grimes turned his head back eerily slow to face him, "What was that?"

"You know I want to talk to her, so can I please?"

His father narrowed his eyes at him.

"He can. I'm right here so let him", Lori insisted firmly, causing Carl to send her a quick warning glance, "You cannot stop him from talking to me-"

"Do you mind staying out this?! I'm having a conversation with my son!-"

"You're not having a conversation! You're yelling at him! He just wanted to come and see his mother and he should have every right to!-"

"His mother ain't here though, is she?!"

"Aye, bring it down folks", Daryl rested a hand on Rick's shoulder in an attempt to calm him.

Carl tried to move into his father's line of sight, "Dad-"

"You skipped school to do this?!", Rick fumed.

"Obviously he felt like he had to! Look how your acting! I'd be scared of you too!"

Carl's fists balled at his sides as he looked towards his birth mother, "Can you stop, please?"

"What are trying to say Lori? Huh?", His father rested both hands on the counter as he cocked his head at her, "You looking for something else to pad out this stupid case of yours-"

"You are trying to stop him from talking to me!", Lori spat out.

"Because you don't give a damn about him! If you did, then you wouldn't have even _thought_ about doing everythan' that you've done to him!-"

"You will always use that against me, won't you?! That's the only thing negative thing that you can use against me!"

"That's the most important thang!", His father roared, his neck and face growing red, "When will you get it through your head that abandoning your child and going off to start a new family isn't something that you just sweep under the carpet!? Then you come back here demanding to see him!? In what world did you think that that's okay?!"

"Rick-", Daryl grabbed hold of his friends arm.

"But I haven't gotten one thank you from you or _her_ for letting _her_ play mother to him have I?! Do you hear me bringing that up?! I let you have your perfect little family and what thanks have I gotten for it?!", Lori stood her ground, her eyes bulging as she yelled, "I stayed away!"

"Because you didn't care! So don't you dare make out that you did this for us or him because you only cared about Shane and Milly!", His father squinted at her, "And you think I'm going to let you slither back into my sons life?! When the best thang you've ever done for him was leave?!"

"You're just doing this for _her!_ You're fighting this for her!", Lori's eyes narrowed as the words fell from her mouth dripped in venom, "You're holding on to him for her because you know that you got lucky with your daughter and she obviously can't give you another"

Carl's eyes flew open with shock, "What-"

"What the hell is wrong with you?", Daryl's lip curled in disgust at the brunette.

"Say that again", His father's voice was barely recognisable as he leaned in, "I want you to say that to me again"

Lori crossed her arms over her chest, "You heard me-"

"Say it again!", he boomed, slamming his hand down on the counter so hard that the glass splintered.

"Aye! Let's go! Come on!", Daryl barked, attempting to pull the enraged man back.

"You'll hate me when this is through, Lori. I promise you will", His father issued coldly, finally backing away from the counter, "Let's go, Carl! Now!"

Carl was still in stunned in place, horrified by the turn of events. He glared at Lori, whose demeanour changed when she seemed to remember the teen was present, "Carl, I'm so sorry-"

He held his hand up to stop her, "Don't. Thanks for showing me first-hand what kind of person you are"

"I didn't mean-"

"Just stop!", he growled stalking out of the store to find his father.

His feet pounded the pavement as he paced back and forth, raking his fingers through his hair, "Did you hear what she said to me?"

"I heard it. Don't even pay her no mind, man. She's spiteful woman", Daryl watched him carefully.

Carl inched closer to them, "Dad? Are you alright?"

His father stopped to look at him, his mouth opening to say something when he slapped a hand against his chest plate, "What the hell?"

"Dad?"

"What's going on?", Daryl and Carl were quickly on the either side of him.

He doubled over, wincing in pain as his muttered, "Shit"

Carl's heart raced in his chest as he grabbed the other arm, "Oh my god, dad-"

"I'm fine-", He could barely get the words out as his brow shined from perspiration, _"Shit,_ I'm not"

"Come on, we need to get him to a hospital", Daryl instructed to Carl as he took hold of his arm.

They helped him back over to the squad car, and sat him in the back with Carl, while Daryl quickly jumped in the driver's seat, switching on the sirens as he pulled on to the street.

"Dad, I'm calling mom", Carl insisted, taking out his phone with trembling hands.

"Don't… you... dare", The parent panted through gritted teeth.

"I have to call her dad", He insisted, tapping the screen at record breaking speed and putting it to his ear, "She'll kill us if I don't"

"He's right", Daryl rasped from the front seat, peering at them from the rear view mirror as he sped down the street.

"Carl? What's wrong? You better not have your phone out in class- is that sirens? Why can I hear sirens, Carl?!", His mother quizzed as soon as she answered his call.

"I'm with dad, we're taking him to the hospital", Carl explained hurriedly.

"What?! Why?! Where are you?!"

"I skipped school to go talk to Lori and dad caught me and they got into an argument and now dad's sweating and he's holding his chest and I don't know what to do", He blurted out, riding his lungs of any air in the process.

"What?!"

"He looks like he's in a lot of pain-"

"Give the phone to your father, now!"

Carl did as he was told, holding the phone by his father's ear.

"Yeah?", The man breathed, but quickly snapped his eyes shut and turned away from the device when the screeching began. Carl could barely make out what his mother was screaming, but he imagined he would be reprimanded in the same fashion, "Carl… move... the phone"

The teen put the device back to his ear when the shrill sound stopped, "Mom?"

"I'm on my way, okay? Don't panic, just get him to a doctor, alright?", His mother insisted in a considerably calmer tone.

"Yes, mom"

"Okay, bye", Carl hung up, and shoved his phone back in his pocket before resting a hand on the pained man's shoulder, "Mom said she's coming, okay? I'm sorry but I don't what to do dad, is it a heart attack? Aren't you too young for that?"

His father grimaced through forced, quickened breaths.

"Dad, I'm really scared right now-"

"Hey! It's alright, he's gonna be fine", Daryl called back, "It's probably just heartburn"

Carl looked from his Uncle to his father, "O-Okay"

The teenager didn't take his eyes off him, keeping one hand on his shoulder and the other on his forearm. He was out of his depths, and seeing his father in pain was a scene that would be burned into his memory.

…

Carl sat beside his dad in the hospital bed, feeling riddled with guilt. His father was in a much better condition, but obviously drained from the event.

"I'm sorry, dad", Carl huffed, looking up at his father, "I shouldn't have skipped school…"

His father peered back at him with one bloodshot eye, "No. You shouldn't have. But the rest is my own doing, so don't you worry about that"

"...You're not going to tell mom what she said are you?"

His father scowled at the wall in front of him, "I don't ever wanna hear those words said again, by anybody. So you can go ahead and forget about that"

"I will."

"Good".

"I know I shouldn't have gone to see her like that, but I know you would have done the same if you were in my position. That's kinda what drove me to do it in the first place"

His father's expression softened, "Carl, I need you to be a better man than me, alright? I need you to air on the side of caution, and to think thangs out properly before you act. I'm glad you have my passion and my determination but I want you to hold it better than I do, especially for your mother and your sister"

Carl frowned, "Okay, but can you not talk like that?"

"Like what?"

"Like you're dying in a sitcom or something"

"I am not talking like I'm dying in a sitcom-"

"You literally just sounded like a character in a sitcom about to pass on the family business as he lay on his deathbed"

His father stared at him, "I'm telling your mother this was all your fault."

"What?!", Carl's mouth fell open in disbelief, until he saw an evil smile spread on his father's face, and the teen glowed.

The sound of heels hitting the floor echoed throughout the halls before Carl saw his mother, wearing a concerned expression. She soon joined his father at his bedside too, "The nurse said you'll probably be here over night-"

His father snorted, "What for? I'm fine-"

"Have you seen yourself-"

"I've been shot twice, Michonne. Really, this is nothing-"

"Oh! So that makes it okay?!-"

"I didn't say that-"

"If that's the kind of logic you're working with, then why don't you just increase your drinking and take out your liver while we're at it-"

"You'd like that wouldn't you?", His father narrowed his eyes at her, "Any reason to harvest my organs for your next meal-"

"Oh yeah, that's exactly what I want", His mother nodded as she glared at him, "I want to eat the organs of a fifty-five year old man-"

His father frowned, "Fifty five?"

She rolled her eyes at him before turning her attentions soon turned to Carl, "And you-"

Carl shrunk, "I'm sorry, mom-"

"I watched you walk into school! I don't understand, do they have an open door policy there?! Do they have two big parlour doors that kids can just walk in and out when they please?!"

"I did walk in… and then I walked out-"

"Did you hear that?!", His mother looked to his father, "He walked in and walked right out! We are sending him to a bar!-"

His father's face pinched with confusion, "They don't tie them down once they're in the building, Michonne, so you can't blame them, this is all him-"

"It shouldn't be that easy for him to leave!-"

"He shouldn't have left in the first place! His ass should have been in school!-"

Carl inhaled deeply before speaking over them, "I went to tell Lori to back off. I was in the middle of that when dad came in"

His mother's brow furrowed at the teen, "You do not need to speak to her-"

"I know I don't, but I wanted to. It's not fair that she gets to do this"

"No, it's not, but we're trying to do things by the book here, Carl-"

"She doesn't even care about me! I'm literally just something for her to use to get to you and dad!-"

"We know that-"

"Have either of you even considered what will happen if she wins? If I have to start to see or even have to live with her or something? I don't want that!-"

"Hey!", His father barked, holding out his hand to stop him, "Stop right there, because I've told you plenty of times, that that's not an option here-"

"But what if-"

"There isn't even a 'If' there"

"He's right", His mother added softly, "You know we won't let that happen"

Carl's eyes darted back and forth between his parents as he tried to absorb their words. They couldn't completely eradicate his fears, but he also knew that his parents were both fiercely determined and protective people. He slowly nodded, trying to put his mind at ease, "Yeah. You're right"

The door opened, and Dr. Spencer stepped in with a smile, "Good afternoon everyone, I'm just here till have a little talk with Rick about his condition-"

"I'm fine", His father rasped, curling his top lip in annoyance. Carl wasn't sure why his father disliked the doctor, but Carl hardly ever knew why his father disliked someone.

"Well that's true, you are doing fine now, but we think what you experienced earlier was some very erratic heart palpitations, also known as an irregular heartbeat. What I would like to know was you doing when they started?"

"Probably yelling", Carl's mother answered dryly as she peeked out the corner of her eye at her husband.

"No… I had just finished yelling, thank you very much", He countered smugly.

Dr. Spencer squinted at him, "Ah? Do you usually get that angry? Angry enough to yell?"

His mother smirked, "He doesn't need to be angry to yell. He just needs to be able to _breath."_

Carl couldn't hold back his laughter at his mother's description of his father, and neither can the Dr.

"He has the temperament of a three year old. He only knows two types of emotions, angry and angrier"

Dr. Spencer slowly nodded, "...Well then that sounds like your problem Sheriff. If your go to reaction is always anger then it can wreak havoc on your body. You need to learn to take it easy, take a calmer approach to issues-"

His father shook his head, "That doesn't work for me"

"It's true", His mother nodded in agreement, "He has to release his anger or else he breaks things"

"Oh yeah, he broke the lamp. And the coffee machine", Carl added, "The remote too"

Both his parents nodded, while Dr. Spencer looked at them all through confused, narrowed eyes, "...Right. Well, how about this, I will recommend you to the hospitals special crisis management scheme-"

"That's a fancy way of saying anger management", His father cocked his head at the other man.

"We actually deal with a wide range of emotional states that could be deemed detrimental to-"

"No, thank you"

"He'll do it", His mother stepped closer to , "Is there somewhere I can sign him up?"

The man shifted uneasily, "Patients have to give consent to take part in these kinds of things-",

"Rick, you're doing it".

"No I'm not", Her husband chuckled with disbelief.

"Either you do this here or you do this with Aaron. What's your choice? Because either way I don't mind, I'll drag you kicking answer screaming to both", Carl's mother crossed her arms over her chest as she rolled her shoulders back, "Your move?"

Carl had witnessed his parent's silent battles many times before, so he retrieved his phone from his pocket and inched towards the door, "I'm going to go get some fresh air-"

"You're doing this, Grimes!"

"Are you gonna make me?!"

Carl quickly shut the door behind him, so no one could hear his parents argue. As much as he'd love to see his mother get her way with his very stubborn father, he was desperate to call his long distance girlfriend, Lauren. They had taken to calling each other at lunch time during school hours, and as he wasn't in school, he thought he would try his luck anyway.

"Hey…", The girl answered relatively quickly.

Carl leaned on the wall beside the waiting room, a large smile forming on his face, "Hey. You okay?"

"Yeah… You?"

"Yeah. I'm at the hospital, my dad went nuts and so did his heart"

"Really? Is he okay?"

"Yeah. He's good now. My mom's just yelling at him… where are you?"

"I'm at home… I've been a little sick"

Carl's smiled faded fast, "Really? What is it?"

The line was silent for a moment, but then he heard her sigh, "I was going to call you later…"

"What is it? Are you really really sick?"

"...I think I'm pregnant"

Carl's heart seemed to want to mimic his father's as he choked out, "What?"

"I'm not sure but… I think so…"

The teen's eyes grew wide, breathing through his mouth, "You cheated on me? What- when? Who? When was this?"

"...I'm so sorry, Carl", the girl began to sob down the phone, "It was an accident, I was just upset because my dad went crazy and you weren't there-"

"I can't believe this…", Carl's eyes stung as he stared at the wall opposite him.

"He doesn't even know… I haven't spoken to him since… you're the first person I've told… I don't know what else to do… I've wanted to tell you since it happened but when we got back from the cruise my dad was even more strict than before and I couldn't do anything-"

"Who was it?", Carl asked, though he wasn't sure how that would help the situation.

The teen began sobbing louder, but still managed to spit out, "...Gerald".

Carl frowned for only a few seconds before his eyebrows sprung up, "My cousin? My cousin, _Gerald?"_

"...Yeah...".


	47. Chapter 47

**Chapter 47:**

 _'You haven't done that in a while either..._ '

"I don't want you eating anymore junk, and we're cutting out all that alcohol-"

Michonne's husband snarled at her, "Leave me alone, woman "

"No. You shouldn't be having problems like this at your age", Her eyes scanned the screen on her phone, "You need to exercise too. Fighting doesn't count as exercise"

He rolled his eyes at her.

"I'm being serious here, Rick. I don't want to receive a call like that ever again-"

"Look at me", He urged, tapping her knee as she sat facing him on the bed. When her eyes darted up to his, he tilted his head at her, "You see that I'm fine now, right?"

"No. One of your eyes are-"

"I know that, Michonne. But otherwise, I'm fine, right? I was in a little pain earlier but otherwise, I'm good. I don't need to be on any kind of long term medication-"

"Your dad was perfectly fine on the outside, Rick", She hated to bring her father in law into the discussion, as she didn't want to scare him, but just remind him, "He was fixing our porch two weeks before he passed. He was always fixing something and working on someone's yard, then look what happened, just out of the blue, he has a heart attack"

He clenched his jaw as he looked away from her, "You think I don't know that?"

"I know you know that. What I'm saying to you is that I don't want a repeat of that"

"Yeah, well neither do I"

"Then let's be a little more careful in the future, okay? Please?", She dropped her hand on top of his, forcing him to give her attention.

Her husband was stubborn, so stubborn that all he could do is give her a quick nod.

"What the hell could have possibly happened to have made you that angry? So angry that you popped a damn vessel in your eye and messed up your heartbeat?"

Rick stared at her for a moment before shrugging, "I can't even remember"

"You're lying to me. I know you are", She snapped, "So tell me right now"

"No. Never", He shook his head, looking elsewhere.

"Rick-"

"Michonne, this is one of those thangs that I don't ever want to bring up again", He announced firmly, "And I mean that. Just thinking about it right now is making me angry again, so just leave it alone"

Her eyes studied him as she desperate to know what could send her husband to such a dark place, but she didn't want him to do anymore damage to himself, "Fine."

"Good."

"...You're going to that anger management class-"

"No. I'm not", He pulled his hand out from underneath hers.

Michonne bit her tongue, deciding to try a different approach, one she hadn't used for quite some time. She tilted her head at him as she sighed, pouting her lips ever so slightly.

Rick raised an eyebrow at her, looking highly amused, "You haven't had to resort to that for a long time? Desperate times call for desperate measures, huh?"

She rolled her shoulders back as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"I'm only scared of you when you have a potential weapon in your hand", He snickered.

"Well let me go find one then", She didn't expect him to grab hold of her wrist, so she instinctively pulled away.

"You ain't going anywhere", He chuckled.

"You know you should be scared of me regardless", She pursed her lips to stop herself from smiling, trying to free herself out of his grip.

"Do you think you're stronger than me?", He grinned, pulling her closer to him so her hand was against his bare chest.

Michonne was shocked to see her husband interacting with her in such a way, as he hadn't flirted with her for weeks. Her gaze dropped to her hand, her mouth slightly agape, "You haven't done this in a while either…"

Rick's thumb brushed her wrist, his eyes glued to hers, "I know…"

While Michonne craved his affection more than anything, she also had to be mindful of their whereabouts, and the possibility of who was around, "Where's Carl?"

Her husband squinted behind her, his hold on her loosening, "Probably in the canteen. Or at a vending machine. Wherever food is".

"Let me call him, I need to pick up your truck from the department, talk to his teacher and pick up Judith-", Her eyes were back on her phone screen again.

"Leave the truck there. Just get Judith and go home."

She put the phone to her ear and listened as the call rang out, "Oh, come on Carl"

Rick watched her attempt to make another call, but still, to no avail, "He's probably not paying attention to it"

"Carl's phone is always in his hand, so no chance of that", She stood up, "I'm going to look for him"

"Get the nurse to make an announcement… tell her to call him 'Carli Grimes'...", Rick sniggered.

"You're terrible"

"I know".

Despite what her husband thought, Michonne tried not to panic too often. She couldn't help the fact that she was fuelled by emotion in most circumstances, and the pregnancy didn't help matters, so after searching all areas open to the public, but finding no sign of her son, nausea soon ruled her stomach.

"This isn't like him, Rick", She nibbled on her nail as she paced back and forth, "He always answers his phone, especially to my calls"

"How long has it been?", her husband looked at his watch on his wrist, "Thirty minutes?"

"Forty.", She retrieved her phone again, "I'm going to ask Sasha to pick Judith up for me and I'm going to go look for him"

Rick exhaled tiredly, then flipped his legs over the bed, "Alright"

"What are you doing?"

"I'm coming with you", Rick pulled the patches attached to the monitors off him, causing them both to beep loudly.

"Rick, get back in bed now", Michonne warned.

"No."

"You need to rest!", She issued, "So lay down!"

"How much rest do you think I'd get if I was sitting there while you went out looking for Carl on your own? Panicking about it?"

"Why are you not panicking about this?!"

"Because I imagine that he's probably just wondered off somewhere", He huffed, pulling on his uniform shirt, "It's been a long day and he might have gone outside to cool off-"

"Then why isn't he answering his phone?"

"I don't know why, Michonne. I'm just guessing here"

She returned to biting her nails nervously while her husband dressed, her mind overflowing with worry. Although she knew Rick thought otherwise, she was sure she knew the teenagers habits better, and he hardly ever 'wondered off', but she hoped that that was the case, and nothing more serious has happened.

It was almost comical how easy it was for Rick to leave the hospital without question, but she imagined their phones would be ringing at any moment. They stood outside the front of the hospital looking for the teen once more, while Michonne tried calling him multiple times.

"What if somebody took him?", Michonne ran her hands over her hair as she began to confess her worst fears, "What if he came out here and got hit by a car and they took him back inside?"

Rick looked at his wife with a frown, "Or what if he just went home? Huh? Can we start with the likely possibilities first?"

"He would have walked all the way home without telling us?"

Her husband slowly nodded, "Yeah, but not for no reason…"

"I don't want to leave until I know he's definitely not here"

"We know his phones not switched off 'cause it keeps ringing out, right? So he can make a call, even if it's someone else to get a ride, he can call, so we go home and wait it out there. If he ain't back within the hour then I'm going out and I'm looking for him, alright?"

"...How are we getting home, Rick? Your trucks at the department and my cars sitting under a blanket of dust in the garage", She pointed out, resting one hand on her hip.

He looked towards the parking lot as it dawned on him, then a little growl left his lips, "Let me call Daryl"

…

"Where's Carl?"

Michonne glanced at her daughter from over her shoulder, "Your brother went for a walk, sweetie"

Judith stared at her mother back, "Can I go for a walk?"

"Never. Never ever. If you want to go for a walk then you go in the backyard, okay?", Michonne finally tore her gaze away from the living room window to look at her daughter properly.

The little girl seemed confused by her mother's reply, but she nodded anyway, "Okay…"

Michonne held her phone in her hands, checking it unnecessarily every few moments. She had already spoken to a nurse from the hospital, who was less than pleased to learn of Rick's early departure, but Michonne assured her that she would drag her husband back for a check-up the next day.

Her phone vibrated in her hands and she answered it without bothering to look at the caller, "Hello?"

"Hey Michonne, Uh, Glenn's on his way over with Carl-", Maggie started.

"Oh thank God!", Michonne breathed a sigh of relief, "Where was he? What happened?!"

"He just turned up at our house asking for a lift home. That's all he said… what happened? Is everything alright?"

She slapped her hand to her forehead as she exhaled, "Rick was in the hospital, he stressed his heart out because he got so mad, and one minute Carl was there and the next he disappeared-"

"Oh my god, is Rick alright?... Hold on… Ally, put your sister down, please!... Thank you…. Sorry about that, go on?"

"He's fine, he's out looking for Carl now, he's been gone since this afternoon and we've been running around like headless chickens-"

"Why didn't you call me?!"

"Because I was too busy losing my mind, I guess"

"He weren't acting like himself when he was here. He seemed mad. Really mad"

Michonne frowned as she relayed what had happened earlier, "I don't even know why? He was fine at the hospital… I think he was even laughing when I last saw him"

"Well they left a couple of minutes ago so he should be with you soon. And next time make sure you call me-"

 _"Maggie_ \- you have three kids under the age of four-"

"And I also have a husband that I can send out to help, so there"

Michonne smiled, for the first time in hours, "Thank you, but I don't think Carl will be doing anything like this again once his father gets too him"

"Rick's going right back in that hospital, huh?"

"He better not. I told him if he ends up in a hospital bed again then I'll kill him"

Maggie cackled, "Aw, It's nice to hear the two of you are doing well again"

Michonne almost sighed, "Yeah, something like that, but I've got to call him and tell him to come home, and thank you so much-"

"It's fine, go on. Give me a call later"

She bid her friend farewell before hanging up the phone and calling Rick to let him know of his son's whereabouts. As mad as she was that the teenager would choose to disappear for a whole afternoon, she was more worried about him than anything else. She was also worried about her husband, and she knew he wouldn't be able to bottle up his anger towards the teenager. The only person she wasn't worried about was Judith, who was having the time of her life eating popcorn in front of the TV.

When the doorbell rang shortly after her conversation with Maggie, and Michonne raced to the front door.

Carl was stood there with his head down, wearing an annoyed expression, while Glenn stood behind him awkwardly, "Hey Michonne… uh-"

"Thank you so much Glenn", She flashed him a quick smile, just as Carl marched in the home, giving his mother a wide berth.

"Don't mention it…", Glenn watched the teenager for a moment before lowering his voice, "I didn't get anything out of him. He just sat there."

She ran her hand over her face, "I'm going to try"

"Good luck. I'll talk to you guys later", Glenn gave her a little wave before backing off the porch.

"Thanks again!"

Michonne racked her brain with ways to handle the situation without blowing it out of proportion. She knew her son was obviously bothered by something, and she was eager to know what, so she wanted to try to a different approach.

She hovered outside his bedroom door for a moment, before knocking, "Carl? Open the door"

The teenager's footsteps could be heard moving around the room before he finally swung open the door. He didn't make any attempt to speak, but watched his mother with cold eyes.

"What's going on here? Why did you just leave the hospital like that?"

He shrugged.

Michonne bit her lip to stop herself from reacting to his attitude, "I need to know what the problem is here, Carl"

"I went for a walk", He responded dryly.

"So you think you can just disappear for nearly five hours without telling anyone where you're going or answering any of my calls? You think that's something you're allowed to do?"

The teenager mouth remained closed.

She sighed, sticking out her hand, "Phone. Now"

He didn't move.

"Carl, don't make me say it again", She warned, giving him her most serious tone.

His lip curled in further annoyance, but he still turned back into his room and snatched the phone off his desk. He proceeded to drop the phone in her hand and slam the door.

Michonne's eyes widened as she grabbed the door handle and swung it open again, abandoning all hope of trying to remain calm, "Are you crazy?! What the hell was that, Carl?!"

"I don't want to talk to you! You can't force me to talk to you if I don't want to!", Carl roared, his deepened voice traveling through at the house.

"You don't have to talk to me but you will not be rude to me either, Carl! I don't know what happened this afternoon but acting like this will not make matters any better and it certainly doesn't give you the excuse to do whatever you please! Do you understand that?"

The teen looked at her with eyes of thunder, making no attempt to reply.

"Carl!-"

"Got it!", He finally barked, turning away from her.

Michonne took in a long calming breath as she spun on her heel and left the room, still holding her son's phone, tempted to hurl the device at the wall.

She'd discovered that arguing with Carl was almost identical to arguing with Rick, as they both held all their emotion in their eyes and yelled with a similar base in their tones. It was only natural that he would have some similarities with his father, however Michonne wished it wasn't that.

She was sat at the bottom of the stairs with her head in her hands when her daughter approached, wearing a look of concern, "What's wrong, Mama?"

Michonne looked up, and quickly shook her head, "Nothing sweetie, I'm just tired"

Judith's little eyes trailed up the stairs, then back down again. She could see the girl putting the pieces of the puzzle together, "...Do you wanna watch Adventure time with me?"

She smiled at the girl, "I will, I promise. Just give me a minute, okay?"

Judith nodded, turning back to the living room, but stopping dead in her tracks when she heard the door open, "Daddy!"

Rick appeared, and his angered expression immediately turned to a happy one when he saw Judith, "Hey, my little angel"

"Where did you go?"

"On a wild goose chase", Rick sighed, hanging up his windbreaker.

Judith frowned, "You were chasing a goose? That's silly"

"Yeah", He chuckled at her, "Go on and sit down for me, I'll come join you in a little while, alright?"

She narrowed her eyes at her father, before stepping into the living area.

Rick didn't miss that look, and he rose an eyebrow at his daughter's back as he stepped closer to the stairs, "Where is he?"

"Bedroom… leave him alone", Michonne huffed, returning her head back in her hands again.

 _"Leave_ him alone?", He tilted his head as he looked down at her.

"Yes. I spoke to him and he isn't giving anything away right now, but he's clearly angry and upset and he just needs to be alone for a while"

"No.", Rick shook his head, "Excuse me, please-"

"Rick!", She breathed through gritted teeth as she snapped her head up, "No! Leave him alone!"

"You know what he's done today, right?-"

"I know, Rick!"

Her husband's gaze travelled all over her, picking up on her soured mood, "What happened when you talked to him?"

"He said he didn't want to talk-"

"What else happened?"

She hesitated, knowing she would have to continue to block his path once she told him about his son's behaviour, "He slammed the door in my face when I asked for his phone back, then we got into a little argument"

Rick took a step back as if disbelief had knocked him unsteady, "Carl? He did that?"

"He did that"

His eyes climbed up the stairs behind her, "Move out the way, please-"

"No. Leave him alone-"

"Michonne-"

"Rick. I want you to leave him alone", She said firmly.

"This isn't somethan' that gets left alone", He bit out, leaning forward to look at her, "He doesn't get to hide out in his room after that-"

"I know what he did, but he's up there right now and he's hurt. I don't know what hurt him because he won't tell me-", She stopped herself when her voice broke, "He said he doesn't want to talk to me"

Her husband appeared to soften, crouching down in front of her, "You alright?"

Her shoulders fell, "No."

He took hold of her hand between both of his, "He's out of line here, Michonne. It's been one thang after the other today, and I won't stand for it"

"I know"

"I'm gonna talk to him-"

"We'll talk to him, but just not tonight, please? Just… just let everyone calm down, and we'll deal with it tomorrow, okay?", She pleaded lightly.

Rick mulled over her request, his eyes darting all over her face. It was a lot to ask of a man who rarely ever missed the opportunity to lay down the law, but he finally nodded, "Fine."

"Thank you".


	48. Chapter 48

**Chapter 48:**

 _'Not obvious...'_

Rick was leaning against the kitchen counter as he watched his children eat their breakfast. His stern gaze only left Carl to look at Judith when she spoke to him, but otherwise, he only had eyes for Carl.

"I'm finished", Judith chirped pushing her chair back to stand.

"Good girl", Rick smiled, watching her take her bowl to the sink, "Go get dressed, Mama's going to do your hair when she's done"

"Okie doke", His darling daughter skipped out the kitchen, her dark mane bouncing behind her. When Rick heard Carl drop his spoon in his bowl and he saw the teenager stand, he growled, "Sit. Now"

Carl froze for a second, before sitting back down with a thud, muttering something under his breath.

"I'm sorry, what was that?", Rick tilted his head at his son as he strolled over to the breakfast table and put his cup of coffee down.

The teenager said nothing, instead keeping his gaze on the empty bowl in front of him.

Rick pulled the chair out and sat facing his son, "I'm going to give you the opportunity to explain yourself, but if you still feel like you don't have anything to say, then I'd like to get straight to the point. So what's your pleasure?"

Carl didn't even attempt to open his mouth.

Rick stared at him for a few more moments, then slowly nodded as he prepared to read him the riot act, "You see, that's fine. That right there, what you're doing? That's fine. If you're not ready to talk about whatever it is that has you acting like this, then your mother and I won't force you. We'll wait until you're ready to come to us to talk about it, and we'll try to help you anyway we can, because that's one of the many thangs that were here for. To help you, to look after you and to be there for you when you need it"

He noticed his son's jaw clench as his frown intensified.

Rick sat forward, resting his forearm on the table as he lowered his voice, "That won't ever change, and it doesn't matter how old you get, we'll always be here for you like no other. Now I'm duty bound to play that role in your life, because I helped make you, and it's because of that that I love you more than I love my damn self. That's usually what happens when you have a child. But you see that woman upstairs? The one that stepped into our lives with open arms, for both of us? She chose this role. She decided you were her own the first time she laid eyes on you, and ever since then she has been willing to fight tooth and nail for you. I have never had to question how much she loves you, and do you wanna know why that is?"

His son kept his glistening eyes fixed on the bowl.

"Because I've seen how it hurts her to know that you're hurt. I've seen how down she gets when you're not happy. That's the kind of effect a child has on their parents, and I know you're aware of that, and you feel the same when she's hurt or upset, but for some reason, you decided that none of that matters yesterday. You decided that you didn't care who you hurt or who you upset, and you decided that you didn't care that your mother was on the receiving end of that. Now this is where I have to remind you who your father is, because everythan' you did yesterday, comes under the list of thangs that I don't stand for, and treating your mother the way you did, is the very first thang on that list"

Carl wiped a stray tear with the back of his hand, still not looking at his father.

"I don't ever want to hear anythan' like that again, and I better not witness anythan' like that either, because your mother won't always be able to stop me from getting to you. Are we clear on that?"

Carl sniffed as he gave his father a quick nod.

As disappointed as he was, and as angry as he was, seeing his son cry caused a lump to grow in Ricks throat, and he sat back as he took in the slightly distressing sight, "You feel like you want to talk about it now?"

Carl sniffed again, wiping another tear as he answered quietly, "Lauren thinks... she's pregnant"

Rick's chest caved, as he cocked his head at Carl, "Excuse me?"

"By….Gerald"

Rick face went through a range of emotions as he tried to absorb their shocking news, "Your cousin, Gerald?...My nephew?...My brother's son? That Gerald?"

The teen gave him another little nod.

Rick stared at him with pure disbelief, his mouth agape and his eyes narrowing, "She told you this? Yesterday? That's why you left?"

Another nod from his son.

It was the very last thing he expected to hear from Carl, although he should have suspected it, as his son wouldn't behave in such a way over something trivial. He groaned, running his hands over his face as he tried to gather his thoughts, "Have you spoken to Gerald? Does he know?"

"No", Carl sighed, finally letting his gaze roam, "And he doesn't know"

Rick slowly nodded, "Well… he will do. Pretty soon. I'll make sure of that"

"Can I go now?"

"Yeah, go on", Rick huffed, scratching his brow with his thumb. He watched Carl stand up and take his bowl to the sink, before calling, "Wait. Come here"

Carl did as he was told, trudging over to his father. Rick stood up with open arms, and he was surprised at how easy it was for the boy to crumble into him, as if that's all he had wanted all along.

"I've been there", Rick exhaled tiredly, resting his chin on top of the boys head, "It's… well, let's just say it's _not_ a nice feeling at all, and you're probably gonna feel like this for a while, but it's… it does get better. It will get better"

Carl nodded, his tears soaking through Rick's uniform shirt. Rick rubbed his back in a soothing motion, hoping his son would find some comfort in his words. He heard footsteps descending the stairs, and his wife stepped into view, wearing her white blouse and black skirt for work. She stopped when she saw Rick and Carl in the kitchen, her eyes wide with alert. Rick gave her a discrete wave of the hand to signal that everything was fine, though it wasn't. He was sure he saw her jaw quiver before she continued her way into the living room.

"It'll be alright", Rick insisted, a new found rage brewing for his nephew, "It will. But you need to get ready for school, we need to have a word with Mrs Monroe about yesterday…"

Carl broke away from him, nodding solemnly, "Okay"

"Go on, go get ready", He patted the boy on the back, and watched him drag his feet down the hall.

Rick knew his wife would appear as soon as the boy had climbed the stairs, and she almost sprinted into the kitchen, "What happened? What did you say? Was he crying? Why was he crying?"

He raised a hand to stop her, "I talked to him, and… I'm not excusing what he did, but I can understand-"

"Oh my god, what is it?", She urged, stepping closer with anticipation.

"Apparently Lauren thinks she's pregnant by-"

"What?!", Michonne screeched.

"By", Rick continued firmly, "Gerald."

"Oh, Gerald?", His wife frowned for only a second, before her face fell, "Gerald? Gerald? Your brothers-"

"Yes. His own cousin. That, Gerald"

Michonne had the same reaction Rick did, her eyes darting all over the place, "The cruise?"

"Must have been", He sighed, adjusting his shirt.

She rested her hands on her hips, "Does he know? Has he spoken to him?"

"No and no, but I'm gonna give Jeffery a call. Let him know"

"You better! They're only fifteen, Rick! They're too young for all that mess!"

"I know. You're not wrong. Hopefully she isn't but… we're gonna have to wait and see"

"Poor Carl", She looked back towards the stairs, "He's probably crushed…"

"He is."

"Maybe we should let him stay home-"

"He's going to school", Rick deadpanned, "He's not taking another day off to run around town, Michonne"

"He just needs time-"

"He will have time. Just not time off", He shrugged, "You have to can't sit around and let it eat you up. No good comes from that"

She gave him a sympathetic look, placing a hand on his arm, "Yeah... Oh, you got an invitation to your high-school reunion this morning".

Rick's brow furrowed at her, "Yeah?"

"Yes. It's next weekend"

He cocked his head at her, "Why do you love to open my mail?"

She raised her eyebrows at him, _"Our_ mail."

"If it's got my name on it-"

"Then it's for _my_ husband, so I can open it", She countered, rolling her shoulders back.

"Is that right? Remind me of when I agreed to that?"

"When you said ' _I do_ '...", She gave him an innocent smile, tapping his arm.

He threw his head back as laughed at her, "I walked right into that one"

"You did", She sniggered, tucking her shirt into her pants.

Rick's gaze dropped to her shirt, "I noticed you're looking a little more…"

She looked down at herself, running her other hand over the material that covered her stomach, "Is it obvious?"

His hand traced over the small lump, "Not obvious… but I can see somethan'-"

"Are we talking to the baby?", Judith quizzed as she stood at the top of the hall, dressed in a red t-shirt and jeans for school. She was soon planted in front of her mother, yelling at her abdomen, "Hi baby! It's me, Judith!"

Rick and Michonne shared a look of amusement as he muttered to her, "This one might come out with a hearing problem"

She snickered, resting her hands on Judith shoulders, "Come on, we need to leave. You too, Sheriff"

"Yes, mam."

…

As soon as Rick closed to the door to his office, he retrieved his phone from his pants pocket, preparing to call his brother. He knew his sibling would be approaching his lunch break, and he figured he would need some time to himself after hearing the news.

He took a seat at his desk as the phone rang, using his thumb and index finger to massage his brow, "Jeff?"

"Hey? What's going on?", Jeffrey answered, in the midst of loud banging and crashing.

"You on site?"

"Yeah, about to come off though, what's wrong? Is Ma' alright?"

"She's fine. I have to talk to you about somethan' though…"

"What is it?"

Rick sighed, sitting up in his seat, "You might be a grandfather soon."

Jeffrey was silent for a moment, before quizzing, "What? Grandfather? Carl? Carl got somebody-"

"If it was Carl, then you'd be a grand-uncle", Rick responded dryly.

His brother was silent again before spitting out, "What?!"

"Yeah. Remember Lauren? Carl's little girlfriend?"

"What? Her and Gerald?"

"Yeah. She told Carl, said she hasn't told Gerald yet…"

"What? When? How?"

"I'm guessing when y'all were on the cruise after we left…"

"No. Not Gerald. He doesn't even know how to talk to girls! He goes red in the face and starts stuttering all over the place!"

"Well, seems like he's learnt how to do a whole lot more than just talk to them..."

"Oh my god…", Rick heard a door slam, "What the hell… I need to talk to him. I need to find out if this is true"

"Call her parents or somethan'. They need to talk to her, find out if she actually is, then y'all can figure out what to do next"

"I'm gonna kill him! That's what's gonna happen next!"

Rick could relate to his brother's anger, "You know I'm gonna need to speak to him, right?"

His brother was silent a third time, "Oh god, Carl? How is he? Is he alright?"

"No. Far from it actually. He started acting out, he disappeared for most of the damn day, then popped back up and decided he wanted to have an attitude with his mother"

"Oh boy-"

"Yeah. I wanted to bury him in the back yard for that. If Michonne wasn't pregnant I would have moved her out the way to get to him-"

"What? Michonne's pregnant? Really?"

Rick stilled, quickly recognising his slip up, "Yeah, she is actually"

"Well, congratulations, little brother. I'm happy for you… I am"

"Thanks. Appreciate it."

"God, what kind of phone call is this..."

"Yeah… sorry to drop all of this on you, but, I had to give you a call… let you know what you're in for."

"Yeah, well thanks, I guess"

"Don't mention it."

Rick bid her brother farewell and sat back with a huff, still worried about his son. While Rick would have preferred that the fifteen year old never experienced such a scenario, especially so young, he felt equipped to help Carl, having been through it himself.

"You are going to love me"

Rick peered at Leon in the doorway as he burst into the room, "You finally stopped leaving food in the squad cars?"

The other man shook his head, "Nope."

Rick stared at him with a blank expression for a few moments, before yelling, "Then tell me?!"

"Alright! First, I managed to track down Molly, we brought her in for questioning, and the boys over in Macon just arrested a man they caught robbing a jewellery store over there, and they called us because I was the one that told them what happened over here"

Rick's eyebrows shot up, "Yeah? Really?"

"Yep.", Leon nodded excitedly, obviously proud of himself.

"But yet, you can't throw out a burger wrapper every once and awhile", Rick muttered under his breath as he stood up, "Well you did good, Leon"

"No problem at all"

"So Molly Deene's here?-"

"Grimes!", Andrea barked from somewhere outside his office, causing Rick to snicker.

"Oh god", Leon huffed, stepping out of the way as the angry woman stepped into view.

"How dare you!", She fumed, marching up to his desk.

"How may I help you?", Rick plastered on a fake smile.

"You knew that I was looking for Deene for my client, and just as I'm about to get her, you sweep in like the grim reaper that you are and take her!"

He shrugged, "You should have been quicker"

"You should have been quicker", the blonde mimicked, pulling a face at him, "The only reason you even knew about her is because you poke around in my partner occasionally!"

He grinned, "Obviously, I must be doing somethan' right then"

Andrea's lip curled in disgust, "You are so _old_ that that is not even cute"

"My wife will think it is"

"Of course she will! She's been blinded by the grey hairs in your beard for so long, that she doesn't know any better!"

He squinted at her as he cupped his ear, "Do you hear that? It's the sound of a highly intoxicated and unwilling man passing out a bar, you should go get him before the other scavengers do"

Her eyes widened as she spat, "Cradle snatcher!"

"Christ", Daryl announced, strolling in the room with a frown, "It's too early for all that"

"I want to be there when you question Molly", Andrea demanded.

"She's not your client", Rick shook his head.

"I don't care! You get your information in some of the most unethical and unprofessional ways so you can't start following the rules now!"

"God, can you stop squawking? You're like damn crow", Rick recoiled away from her.

"No! You let me in there or so help me god I will haunt you. I will be your shadow. Every time you come home from work, I'll be there. When you come down for breakfast on the weekend, I'll be there. Whenever you drape that old body of yours over my poor, blind best friend, I'll be there!"

Daryl gave Rick a little tilt of his head, signalling for him to relent. The thought of seeing Andrea more than once a month made Rick shudder, so he sighed, "If I let you in that room with me then you better keep quiet, I mean it, I don't wanna hear a peep from you"

Andrea sent Rick an evil smile as she straightened up, adjusting her shirt, "Deal. Now let's go, some of us actually have work to do"

Rick scowled at her, muttering loud enough for her to hear, "Yeah, like sanitising your desk"

Andrea froze for only the briefest of moments, before lifting her head up high and stalking out the room as if she didn't hear anything at all, while Rosita swiftly stepped in.

"I've made up a list of things for you to talk about with the kids", Rosita handed a sheet to both Rick and Daryl, "I know you've done this before but I think I've been able to put a new twist on things to keep the kids interested"

Rick frowned at the sheet of paper, "What is this?"

"For career day! Tomorrow!", the woman stressed.

"Oh… Oh", Rick groaned, sliding the sheet onto his desk, "Sorry. I forgot"

"I thought it happened already", Daryl snorted, folding the piece of paper up.

Rosita shook her head at both of them, "Be at the gymnasium for ten and don't forget those sheets, okay?"

"Yeah yeah. Got it", Rick muttered, starting out the room, "Come on, we got a few thangs to-"

"Grimes!", Andrea yelled from down the hall.

"Alright!"


	49. Chapter 49

**Chapter 49:**

 _'She is right'_

"Mom?"

Michonne looked up from her computer to see Carl standing near the island counter. She straightened up, "Yeah?"

"Can we talk?", The teen hadn't said a thing to her since their argument, and after Rick had informed her of why her son was so upset, she had given him a wide berth for his own benefit.

"Sure", She tipped her head towards the bar stool beside her.

Carl took a seat, resting his forearms on the counter, "...I'm sorry… for everything."

Her heart swelled, "Thank you. I appreciate that"

"...I talked to dad, and I know he probably told you everything"

"He did", She reached out and placed her hand on his arm, "I'm sorry, honey. I know it's not a nice thing to go through, but that doesn't mean you get to lash out like that. Where did you even go?"

"I walked around, I just needed a break. Some fresh air."

She released a long suffering sigh, "You had me so worried-"

"I know, and I'm really sorry", He insisted, finally looking up at her.

She gave his arm a squeeze, "We're here when you want to talk, Carl"

"I know", He nodded, "...And thank you for picking dad"

She furrowed her brows at him, "For picking your dad?"

"Yeah… You picked him. Well, us.. because I was part of the deal… and he has to raise me because he made me, but you didn't have to and you've raised me too…so thank you. I love you. A lot"

Michonne's jaw began to quiver as she deciphered what her son's ramblings meant, "Oh, Carl-"

"Please don't cry", He quickly added.

"Get over here!", She ordered, pulling him into her arms. The relief she felt was unparalleled to anything else, and it felt good to finally be able to hold him after knowing how much he was hurting, "Of course I picked you two. I'd always pick you two. I love you both so damn much"

"We love you too", Carl sighed in a happier tone.

"Daddy!", Judith chirped from the hallway.

The teenager looked up towards his sister's voice, "I'm still in a lot of trouble though, right?"

"Of course, honey", She nodded, releasing him, "You skipped school, left the hospital, disappeared for hours, turned up and yelled at your poor, worried mother. Your father's probably going to tear down the house and make you rebuild it with your bare hands"

A quiet chuckle escaped the teenager, and Michonne was glad to see him smile, "Yeah. Got it"

Rick stepped into the room with Judith on his back, the little girl beaming from ear to ear, "Daddy said my Halloween costume is coming"

"Oh that reminds me, I have to get your Woody costume", Michonne returned to computer.

"For who? Dad?", Carl looked to his father with a frown, though the corner of his lips began to turn up into a smile, "You're going to be Woody?"

"And you're going to be Buzz", Rick replied dryly, letting Judith sit on the countertop, "Now, first thang you need to do is get up those stairs, and start working on that bathroom. I wanna' see my smile in those tiles."

Carl's shoulders fell.

"Go on, up you get", Rick tipped his head towards the door, "And be careful, I don't know how long spiders live for but I'm pretty sure the one that was in the attic moved to the bathroom-"

"The one Judith saw when we got back from the cruise? You didn't kill it?", Michonne squinted at him.

"It ran off and daddy watched it go", Judith informed, leaving her father to sigh.

"You're such a big chicken", Michonne sniggered.

"If it's up there, then you have to come help me kill it, dad", Carl looked at Rick for reassurance as he started out the kitchen.

Rick shook his head, "I can't promise that"

"He'll help you", Michonne insisted, and her husband sent her a scornful look, "Go on".

"Daddy, you have a lot of silver hair", Judith tilted her head as she inspected Rick, "How come?"

"Some are from your mother, and some are from your brother", He answered swiftly, retrieving the tub of marshmallows from the pantry, "And I hope you don't give me any"

"How did they give you silver hair?"

Rick exhaled through his nose as he parked himself beside his daughter, "Your mother likes shopping too much, and your brother doesn't like to hold on to his mind"

"Oh…Well, you have a lot, so I won't give you anymore, daddy", Judith's eyes lit up as her father handed her a small handful of the candy.

Warmth radiated from Rick's eyes as he watched Judith, a smile growing on his face, "Of course you won't. You're my little angel"

Judith chuckled at him as she jumped down from the counter, "I know!"

"Go on, go watch your show"

"Okie doke"

Michonne watched the display with a warm heart, though she couldn't resist commenting, "She's going to give you the most silver hair"

"She better not", Rick groaned, strolling over to join her, "You talk to Carl?"

"I did. He apologised, and he said he loves me because I picked you two", She glowed.

Rick chortled as he leaned on the counter, "I'm glad I got through to him"

"What did you say?"

"Nothing…", He looked down at the work splayed in front of her, "What's this?"

"Last minute preparations…", She held up one of the sheets, "I'm actually wanted to talk to you about what happened when you saw Lori? I don't want her trying to use anything against us"

Her husband sneered as he took the paper from her, "She was just talking a whole lot of nonsense"

"What about though Rick? About Carl?"

"Yeah. She said 'he's scared of me' or somethan'-"

"What?", Michonne squinted at him.

"I know, right? I wish he was scared of me, then he wouldn't be a trouble now", Rick snickered at his own joke.

"I don't like that, Rick"

"She can say what she wants, it doesn't mean anythan'. She hasn't got any proof to back it up-"

"I still don't like it", She repeated, taking the sheet back from him, "And we're taking you back to the hospital-"

"What for? I'm fine. I spent the whole day at work with no problems… besides that damn friend of yours turning up"

"She told me", Michonne bit back a chuckle, "The two have you have known each other for far too long now. You can't still be arguing like that-"

"You won't let me arrest her-"

"You can't just arrest her, Rick", She sniggered, about to step past him when he took hold of her wrist, leading her to look at him questioningly.

"Come here", He gruffed quietly, sending a shiver up her spine.

She didn't know why she felt nervous, although she didn't rule out the fact that affection between them had been limited, and she was waiting for him to feel comfortable with her again.

He wrapped his hands around her when she was close enough, lacing his arms around her waist, "You alright?"

She nodded, her hands holding on to his shoulders, "I am. You?"

"Yeah", His head bowed, his face wresting in the crook of her neck.

She let her fingers find their rightful place in his curls, "...We're seeing Aaron this weekend"

A low growl left her husband, "Great"

"Stop that".

…

"God. I can't stand teenagers. Just look at them. They're like little gremlins"

Michonne nearly spat out her coffee as she chuckled, "Andrea, cut it out"

The blonde rolled her eyes, "Where's my nephew? He's the only one I want to see"

"He's going to avoid us, and Rick", Michonne huffed, looked around the gymnasium, "He knows we don't like to miss an opportunity to embarrass him"

Andrea snickered, "Nice"

"Ladies", Mrs Monroe approached them with a warm smile, "Hope you're looking forward to today's career day?"

"We are", Michonne insisted, "Thank you for having us"

"The pleasure is mine", Mrs Monroe's smile tightened as she glanced behind her, "May I ask were your husband is, Mrs Grimes?"

Michonne frowned as she looked towards the police departments stall, "Is he not here?"

"No. Not yet"

"Ah. Well I'll give him a quick-"

"There they are", Andrea pointed out, tipping her head towards the double doors.

Rick strolled in with Daryl, both wearing similar uninterested looks, leading Michonne to inwardly groan, "There they are"

"Oh, thank God. Let me go brief them, thank you ladies", Mrs Monroe spun on her heel and marched towards the men.

"She's so small, but so fast", Andre sighed, nudging Michonne.

"She is", She agreed, watching her husband eye the small woman suspiciously when she approached the two men.

"Oh look, there's Carl", Andrea pointed to the teen, who was making his way in the hall with another two boys, "Carl! Hey Carl!"

The teen looked at Andrea for only a split second before turning the other way, leading both women to cackle. Michonne shook her head at the blonde, "You are horrible"

"I never said _I_ wouldn't embarrass him"

They both stood on either side of the stall as teenagers began showing interest, and Michonne did her best to make her job sound the most desirable, while Andrea did her best not to snarl at the kids.

"Mrs Grimes! How great to see you", Abraham boomed as he joined them, his smile soon vanishing when he saw the other lawyer present, "Andrea"

"Ford.", Andrea bit back, before turning to the other way.

Michonne frowned at the strange, and awkward meeting, "How are you Abraham?"

"I'm doing great, I get to walk around for two hours instead of teaching these little zombies", Abraham sighed, his gaze sailing over the crowds of students.

"Zombies?"

"Yeah. All they care about is screens. Phone screens, TV screens, computer screens. That's it. They're all a bunch of Zombies"

Michonne couldn't help but see the man's point, as she often had her own battle with Carl and his own phone, "Ah. Zombies…"

"Well I'll be sure to send some of them your way. You have a good day now", Abraham gave her a single nod, before stepping away, "Andrea"

"Ford", Andrea spat, facing Michonne again.

"What the hell was that about?", Michonne queried, frowning at the women.

"We went on a date or two a few years ago"

"What? Isn't he married?"

"Yes! He is!"

"Oh…", Michonne cringed, looking in the other direction, "You didn't have adult time with him, did you?"

"No, sadly, we didn't"

"Sadly?", Michonne raised her eyebrows at her scandalous friend.

"Look at how big he is. His _thing_ is probably the size of a fucking Pringles can"

Laughter burst from Michonne's lips, and she had to force herself to straighten up, but Andrea never failed to make her laugh.

"I was thinking for my birthday… instead of going to a bar... we have a little 'girls only' party", Andrea informed quietly.

"Girls only?", Michonne repeated, fixing the sheers on the table.

"Yes, girls only. I got an email about one of those adult toys parties-"

"Oh my god", She groaned, looking at the woman with a raised brow.

"Great idea, right? You never know, you might see something you like-"

"Stop."

"I'll tell Sasha and Maggie. It'll be fun…", Andrea eyes sailed across the hall, then stopped, "Oh boy. The vultures are circling"

Michonne looked up at her friend following her line of sight over to the police department's table, where a batch of female teachers were gathered. She could just about make out her husband in the crowd, "Just great"

"I'm going over", Andrea breathed, smoothing her shirt as she started for the other side of the hall.

Michonne watched her friend apprehend the crowd, snaking her way through to the centre. She could only imagine what Andre did, or said, to make the women disperse so quickly.

"Hey mom", Carl greeted, joining her with two friends at his side.

"Hey!", She smiled, tearing her gaze away from her friend, "You boys interested in becoming a lawyer?"

"No, we're just-"

"I am", The boy Michonne knew as Mickey stepped forward, with slightly widened eyes.

Carl's face pinched in confusion, "Since when?"

"I'm very interested", Mickey insisted, not taking his eyes off Michonne, "I think it's a very brave and noble profession, and I'd love to know more"

Michonne's eyebrows rose as she looked at the teen, "Wow. That's great, Mickey"

"Thank you, Mrs Grimes", Mickey's shoulders fell as he swooned, a goofy smile spreading across his lips.

"Oh my god", Carl muttered under his breath while he looked on with disgust.

Michonne ignored her humiliated son, "So let me tell you all about it…"

…

"Now, I understand that this is a very important week for the two of you. You have a court case coming up with Carl's birth mother, and I'd be very interested to know how you both feel about that?"

Michonne glanced at Rick for a second, before looking back at Aaron, "He's probably handling it better than me"

"Oh? And what makes you think that?"

"As silly as it sounds, because I know chances are slim, I still feel like I have more to lose".

"...As an adoptive mother, I get it", Aaron nodded, glancing down at the notepad on his lap, "And what about you, Rick? Can you understand her reasons for feeling this way?"

Rick pursed his lips for a second, "I think that-"

"He thinks that even if the worst was to happen, he'd still be able to stop it somehow so I shouldn't feel that way, because no matter what, he'll save the day", Michonne ejected.

Rick sighed as he continued to stare at Aaron, "Why don't you just cut out the middleman and talk directly to her. She can answer for me"

Aaron bit back a chuckle, "Michonne, we should let-"

"Alright, fine", She held up her hands in surrender, "He can answer… but I'm right"

"So… Rick? Can you relate to anything-"

"She is right. She knows I won't let Lori gain any access to my son", Rick insisted flatly, "So I don't want her to think that's there's even a chance of that happening"

Aaron's eyes darted between the two of them, "I must say, I do like how in tune the two of you are. You've come a long way since our first session, and I'm glad that the two of you are working together to handle this… and I'd like us to have the same approach when it comes to the newest member of your family…"

Michonne knew the day would come where she would have to openly talk about her troubles with her pregnancy, but it didn't make the topic any easier to tackle.

"How far along are you now?"

She gave a little shrug, "Probably four months?"

"Have you gone to see your obstetrician?"

"No. I haven't had any kind of prenatal care at all…"

"I see… and would you agree that that's because of some of the problems you've faced with your last pregnancy?"

She thought about it, "It's possible"

Aaron nodded, "That's perfectly normal. I think there's an expectation that once a woman falls pregnant, that she must instantly feel some sort of bond with her baby, but that's not always the case. It can be very difficult for some, especially with someone in circumstance like your own. But you shouldn't feel bad about that, and you shouldn't be afraid to voice your worries or concerns either, it's nothing to be ashamed about. There are ways that many people around you, not just me, but Rick, your kids, your family and friends can help you. It's not something that can change overnight but we can all help you to take the steps to bond with your baby"

She felt Rick's hand slip into hers, giving her a reassuring squeeze.

"I think maybe getting the baby checked out would be a good start-"

"Didn't I say that? I said that would help, didn't I?", Rick frowned, peering at his wife.

Michonne rolled her eyes, "He did suggest that"

"That's a great suggestion, Rick", Aaron beamed.

Rick snickered as he looked back at Aaron, "I wouldn't be too quick to praise if I were you. That means I can do your job"

The other man's smile fell.

Michonne snorted at him, "He couldn't. We had a bet a couple months ago that he couldn't go a week without getting angry at anyone, and he ended up breaking stuff".

"I did break a few thangs, but I still won", Rick's face pinched in confusion, "And I didn't yell at anyone! You couldn't go a week without spending anythan'- in fact, she said she blacked out when I caught her with my card-"

"I did! I don't even remember what I bought!"

"We're going a little off topic here…", Aaron commented quietly.

"Because you buy so many unnecessary thangs!"

"Unnecessary?!", She narrowed her eyes at him, rolling her shoulders back in the process, "When was the last time you bought yourself a shirt? Or socks?"

He furrowed his brows at her, and she was sure she could almost see the cogs turning in his mind as he tried to recall the memory, "What's your point?"

"Because I buy all your clothes! Everything down to your boxers! I buy them, and the same with Judith and most of the time with Carl! If I didn't, then you'd all be wearing garbage bags! So if I can't remember what I bought then it's because I buy everything!"

Michonne could almost pinpoint the moment Rick stopped listening to her. Her husband looked back to Aaron, " Can you continue please?"

The counsellor huffed, rubbing his temples as he plastered a smile on his face, "Yes! I can… but before we go any further with the steps to help make this pregnancy a little more enjoyable for you both, I'd like to make a small request. I want the two of you to not argue, about anything, until our next session"

Michonne held her breath.

"No bickering, no arguing, no yelling, no name calling…", Aaron sent Michonne a pointed look, "Just calm, polite conversation. Do you think you can do this?"

Rick looked at Michonne as he began to chuckle, "I can, she can't"

She glared at husband.

"You see that?", Rick tipped his head in her direction, "She's thinking about calling me a 'Jackass' as soon as we leave"

"Michonne", Aaron warned, "I want you both to feel as if you're in the honeymoon period of your relationship-"

"He got into a fight on both of our honeymoons. The first one, he punched the waiter. The second one, he punched one of the children's entertainers and our son's ex-girlfriend's dad", She informed with a monotone.

Aaron seemed to be struggling, "Okay, forget I said that. Just try to be nice to each other, nothing but nice"

Rick seemed to be highly amused, "This is gonna' be fun"

She sighed, stroking her thumb over his, "Oh, it will be".


	50. Chapter 50

**Chapter 50:**

 _'I like the sound of that'_

"I don't like my hair like this, daddy"

Rick sighed for a countless time, trying his best to braid his daughter's hair for bed, "Well, your Mama's not here, so I'm the next best thang-"

"That part doesn't go there", Judith moaned, pointing at the strip of hair he held, "You have to go over that one"

"Like this?"

Judith watched her father in the bathroom mirror with a bothered expression, "No"

"I'm trying my best here, sweetie", Rick strained with a light tone, "Can't you just leave it out for bed? Or put it in a ponytail?"

"No, because it'll hurt when mama does it tomorrow"

"I'm sure we didn't have a problem this before when we lived in different houses", Rick muttered, referring to when he and Michonne was divorced, "You used to sleep with your hair out all the time-"

"Mama didn't like that…", Judith ejected dryly, "Where is Mama?"

"She went over to your aunt Drea's for her birthday"

Judith's mouth fell open, "I want to go to a party!"

"No kids allowed, sweetie", He huffed whilst giving up on the task, and instead just adding an extra hair band, "Besides, didn't you have fun watching a movie with me?"

She tilted her head to look at him, "You didn't watch it, daddy"

"I did. It was about a mouse that couldn't cook-"

"It was a rat! And he could cook!"

Rick frowned at her, "A rat that can cook? That's just silly"

Judith began to giggle, "It's not! It's cute! Can we get pet rat?"

He recoiled from his daughter, "If you can find one that can cook, then yeah. You can have it"

"Daddy!"

"Judith, sweetie, you always want a pet after you watch a movie and pets aren't toys. You have to look after them and care for them for the rest of their lives"

Her blue eyes studied his face for a moment, "...So can I get one?"

He inwardly groaned, "How about I get a pretty dress instead?"

She was immediately torn, "With glitter on it?"

"All the glitter you want"

Judith dropped her gaze as she weighed up her options, and Rick was both proud and saddened by his daughter's resolve, "...No. I still want the rat, daddy"

He outwardly groaned, "Fine. We'll get you a pet rat-"

"Thank you!", She beamed, throwing her arms around his waist.

"Don't thank me yet, we still need to get this past your mama", He exhaled tiredly, rubbing the girl's back, "Come on, let's get you to bed"

"Carl! Carl! Guess what?!", Judith called bolting out the bathroom after releasing her father.

"What?!", Carl called back from his bedroom.

"Daddy's getting me a pet rat!", Rick shook his head as he followed her out the room.

There was a moment of silence, before Carl slid into view on his desk chair, looking at his father strangely from the doorway, "What?"

"A pet rat! Like in Ratatouille-"

"Rats can't cook in real life, Judith", Carl deadpanned, tilting his head at her.

"I know! But I still want one, and I'll love it and I'll look after it and I'll get it a little bed-"

"Speaking of beds, let's get you in yours", Rick gently pushed her into her room.

"Night Carl!

"Night, Judes!"

Rick wondered when the spell that his daughter had him under would wear off. He couldn't help but what to give her everything she wanted, even if it ran the risk of spoiling her rotten, but luckily, his wife wouldn't stand for having a rodent in the home, so he wouldn't have to be the one to turn her down.

Once Judith was in her bed, Rick went over to Carl's room, hovering by the bedroom door, "You finished your homework?"

"Almost", The teen sat back in his chair at his desk.

"Good. When your done, I want you to clean this…", Rick's eyes trailed around the room, "Cesspit"

"You and mom always exaggerate about my room"

"What's that over there?", Rick squinted at the white dish that poked out from beneath his bed, "Is that a plate? Does that plate have food on it?"

Carl spun around to see what his father was talking about, and the boy offered a shrug, "I don't think so"

"Forget your homework. Clean your room, now", Rick instructed, his top lip curling in disgust, "I'm surprised you have been carried off by ants"

Carl closed Michonne's computer, "It's really _not_ that bad-"

"Don't even bring any cups or plates you have in here, downstairs. Just throw them out", Rick was too busy examine the mess to pay attention to his son, "And anythan' that's stained stiff, can go in the trash too"

He didn't trust his son to clean his room properly, and so Rick oversaw the mission to find Carl's floor. It was a good way for him to pass time until his wife returned home from her night out, as well as talk to his son about other things.

"So have you spoken to… Lauren?"

Carl shook his head as he sorted through a pile of magazines, "No."

Rick slowly nodded, sitting on his son's desk chair, "What about your cousin?"

"No."

"Well you don't have to anytime soon but-"

"What did you do after you found out Lori went off with Shane?", Carl asked, squinting at his father.

Rick stilled, trying to recall the memory, "I couldn't really do anything about it, I had you to worry about?"

"So you didn't get mad?"

He scoffed, "I didn't say _that._ I just couldn't do anythan' about it. I was mad, and hurt, but I had your grandparents there to help… your aunt Maggie was a big help too… Daryl… they all just stuck around, tried to help me cope"

Carl's gaze fell to garbage bag on the floor, "...I feel like an idiot"

"Why?"

"Because I… I thought this would be my first serious relationship"

Rick didn't mean to laugh, but he did, and Carl was far from amused, so he held his hands up in surrender, "I'm sorry. I am. But I just want you to remember that you're not even sixteen yet. You're not even halfway done with being a teenager. I'm not saying you can't find someone special because you're young, what I'm saying is, that shouldn't be somethan' you're focusing on right now, because you are still very young"

Carl sighed, "I know"

"You've done some stuff that you don't have any business doing at this age, and I don't know why you're in a rush to do these thangs, but I need for you to slow down and enjoy being a kid for a little longer. Go outside and play in the dirt or somethan'. Chase your sister around a tree. Ask me for money for a damn comic book or some weird action figure", Rick exhaled, raking his fingers through his hair, "Enjoy all that now, because one day you're going to wake up and find yourself with a mountain of bills to pay, a bunch of little mouths to feed, and a wife that likes to play hide and seek with your credit card"

Carl chuckled, shaking his head at him, "We love you too, dad"

"Of course I love you all. I wouldn't know what to do without any of you", He smiled adoringly at the teen, before standing up with a groan, holding his hand out for one of the garbage bags beside his son, "But if you let your room get like this again, then next time I'm cleaning it myself and you'll have nothing but-"

"A mattress and a candle. Got it", Carl finished, handing him over the garbage bag.

He narrowed his eyes at the teen as he chortled, "That's right"

Several garbage bags later, his son's room was clean, and Rick was free to have a shower while Carl went to bed.

It was deep into the evening, and he was beginning to wonder what time his wife would return home, when he heard movement in their bedroom as he crossed the landing.

Michonne was closing her closet door when he appeared, and she gave him one of her plastered on smiles, "Hey. What are you doing?"

He eyed his with suspiciously, "Nothing, just came out the shower. What are you doing?"

"Nothing", She shook her head, resting her hands at her sides.

"How was the party?"

"Good. It was good", She insisted, still not moving from in front of the closet door.

"Yeah? What did you-", Rick stopped when he heard the sound of something falling in the closet behind her. Michonne continued to stare at him as if she heard nothing at all. Rick tilted his head at her, "What was that, Michonne?"

"Probably nothing", She shrugged.

"What's in the closet?", He quizzed, taking a step towards her, leading her to take a step back, and Rick could tell by the look on his wife's face that she wasn't going to say anything further, so he moved closer to her, "You got a dead body in there? A few skeletons?"

She pursed her lips, trying not to smile.

He reached out to grab the handle, when she whacked his hand out of the way, "Did you forget that we had to be nice to each other?"

"I am being nice"

"You just hit me-"

"That was a loving tap"

Laughter burst from Rick's lips, "A _loving_ tap? That's what that was?"

"Yes", She nodded innocently, in a way his daughter often did when she was trying to be deceitful, "How about we just go downstairs-"

"What's in the closet?", Rick was never so easily swayed.

"It's nothing-"

"Then let me see what's in there? What are you hiding from me?", He challenged, but keeping his tone light.

She slowly inhaled, "I told you, Andrea had a girls party-"

"You got a girl in there?"

"No", She was still trying not to laugh at his terrible jokes, "...It's a gift bag"

"A _gift bag?_ From a forty year old woman's birthday party?"

She couldn't hold back her laughter any further, "Stop that! It was just a parting gift…"

"Let me see", He urged, tipping his head towards the closet door.

She hesitated, not moving immediately, but when she did, she spun around and cracked the door open. Rick peered at her with squinted eyes, watching as she bent her knees to retrieve whatever fell, before turning back at round with a pink gift bag.

"Why would you hide this?", He frowned, trying to take the bag from her.

She quickly tucked it behind her, "Now, just wait-"

"Let me see"

"Rick!"

"Open it"

"Oh my god, you're worse than your eight year old daughter", She huffed, holding her hand out to stop him, "Just remember, it was a gift, from my very unconventional and occasionally drunk best friend, okay?"

Rick was bewildered as to why his wife was behaving so guarded, but he agreed, "Fine"

Michonne held the bag up between them, and opened it for him to see, and Rick curious expression turned to a horrified.

"What the hell is that, Michonne?", He rasped, pointing in the bag, "Is that what I think it is?"

"A gift from Andrea-"

"Well she can have it back-"

"Rick-"

"You think you need that?", Rick didn't know why his heart was beating so hard in his chest, but it was.

She tilted her head at him, "No, I don't _think_ I need it"

"Then why would you bring it home?"

She shrugged, "Well, why not?"

Rick knew there was a chance that he was sounding quite selfish, as he hadn't been intimate with his wife for weeks, and he knew she probably missed him as much as he missed her, but to know she could find satisfaction with something else, bothered him greatly. He shifted his stance, "Are you thinking about using that?"

She visibly cringed, "Would it be a bad thing if I did?"

Rick's mouth fell open.

"Okay, look, let's just talk about this properly", She rested her hand on his bare chest, her tone soft, "Would it seriously be a bad thing if I did… try one of these out?"

His gaze dropped to the bag again, then crawled back up to her eyes, "Are you thinking about using that?"

"I asked first", She responded firmly.

He considered his answer carefully, "No. It wouldn't be a bad thang if you did-"

"Good-"

"But", He quickly added, "Are you thinking about using that?"

She rolled her shoulders back, lifting her head a little higher, "Maybe."

He clenched his jaw, slowly nodding as he backed up towards the door, "Alright. Fine"

"Rick-"

"Go on then", He encouraged, closing the door with his foot, "Use it"

His wife's head reeled back an inch, "Excuse me?"

"You heard me", He tipped his head towards the bed.

Her eyes darted from Rick, to the bed, then to Rick once more. He knew he had left her stunned with his order, as her mouth opened and closed a few times, before she finally spoke, "You want me to use this… right now?"

He raised his eyebrows at her as he folded his arms over his chest.

She opened her mouth again to say something, then snapped it shut. He could only imagine what was going through her mind as she strolled over to the bed and dropped the bag down on the comforter. He barely knew what was going through his own mind, other than the fact that he was going to be very jealous of whatever she took out of the bag.

His eyes fell to her waist as she pulled her blouse over her head, exposing her rounding stomach. She turned to face him, her eyes locked on his as she peeled off her jeans and thong in one go. She seemed to finally hop on board with his request, unhooking her bra seductively slow and dropping it by her feet. Rick's member almost jumped with excitement when she turned and bent over, exposing herself to him briefly, then taking a seat on the bed.

She retrieved a white box from inside the bag, freeing the dark purple toy and discarding the packaging away from her. Laying back with her legs spread, she used it to stroke at her folds, all while her eyes didn't leave him and Rick soon realised that he couldn't think straight. One part of him was so undeniably turned on that it physically hurt him to watch her, but the other part of him was fearful.

A breathy moan left her when she slipped the toy in her heat, and Rick found he was correct, he was jealous. He tugged the towel from his waist, allowing his rock hard erection to spring free, and strolled over to the bed, his eyes glued to the scene in front of him. He loved the way she bit her lip when she rolled her hips, the toy disappearing inside her every so often.

"I want you instead…"

Rick's groin fluttered with anticipation, so he climbed on the bed, positioning himself over her, as he ignored the urge not to. He leaned down and kissed his wife softly, and she released a guttural moan, her hand clasping the back of his neck. He shifted his weight to one forearm, so he could reach between them and retrieve the toy, chucking it away from the bed, which earned him a giggle from Michonne.

"Have you missed me?", She whispered, stroking his thigh with her calf as her other arm rested on his shoulders.

"Of course I have", He insisted, aligning himself at her entrance, not taking his eyes of hers as he slid into her wet centre.

Rick could have shuddered from the feel of his wife, and he was instantly reminded why he loved that aspect of their relationship so much.

He drew his hips back and thrust deep within her, forcing a high pitched cry from her lips, her back arching off the mattress. It dawned on him that he wasn't prepared, "It's been a while, Michonne"

"Just do it", She all but growled, and Rick did as he was told.

With both hands flat on the bed on either side of her head, he leaned above her, scanning over her body with lust filled eyes. He took a deep breath, muttering to himself, "Alright"

The first thrust sent Michonne's eyes rolling shut. The second thrust almost made Rick do the same, and by the third her nails were digging into his forearms. He picked up the pace quickly, pounding into her with such a force that the sound of skin slapping together echoed in the room.

"Oh God, Rick!", She cried desperately.

Despite being in the midst of their tryst, Rick was fearful that his wife would slip up again, and so his eyes never left her face. He wouldn't know what he would do if he heard Mike's name in his bedroom again, but he wouldn't rule out having to kill the man.

"Rick..."

Rick snapped out of his thoughts and peered at his wife with a raised brow. She had a look in her eyes that told him everything he needed to know, "You like that?"

He felt her walls tighten around his length as she moaned, "Yeah!"

"You wet for me?"

"Yes!", She cried out, her legs trembling around his waist as she reached her orgasm, "Oh God, yes Rick!"

A primal growl escaped as Rick's met his own release, emptying his load in his wife's pulsing heat. The feeling was beyond euphoric, and he could barely hold himself up, so he buried his face in her neck, in a drenched, panting mess.

"I guess… we need to thank Andrea"

"No."

Michonne giggled a second time, her fingers combing back and forth through his damp hair, "How was that?"

He frowned, his heart beat returning to normal, "...Were you trying not to say his name again?"

"No. I wasn't thinking about anything else but you"

Her words did help shrink his fear to a degree, although not completely. He shifted, about to lay his full weight on her when he stopped himself, "Oh, shit, let me get off you"

She watched him move onto the bed, rolling over to face him, "I've been thinking about something"

"What?"

"Names…"

His eyebrows shot up in shock, "Yeah? Like what?"

"...Andre William Grimes"

A smile crept on his face, "I like the sound of that"

"You do?", She rested her hand on top of his when he placed it on her stomach.

"I do…", His smile was short lived, as realisation hit him, "Wait… Andre, as in _Andrea_? Is that where you-"

"Yes"

"No."

...

 **A/N** : I've had to decide to update my fics every weekend just because life has me by the throat right now lol if I get any updated sooner then I will upload sooner. Hope you enjoyed! xoxo


	51. Chapter 51

**Chapter 51:**

 _'You've been amazing'_

"When I first came across this case, I have to say, I was astounded."

Michonne nearly jumped when she felt Rick's hand on her knee and the bouncing movement she had done continuously since they took their seats came to an end. Her husband appeared calm and collected, and she believed that he was to some degree, but the way his eyes darted from one face to another, told Michonne that he wasn't completely at ease.

"I was also intrigued. I wanted to see first-hand, what kind of situation you people have gotten yourselves into"

She stared at the judge sat at the head of the long, wooden table, not entirely sure where he was going with his speech.

"A mother effectively abandons her son, putting the final nail in the coffin by giving up all rights to him… two years? I believe two years later, then over a decade passed and she files to have her rights reinstated on the ground of… poor mental health at the time they were dissolved…", The judge looked to Lori, who sat on the left hand side of him, "And to make matters more complicated, that child has been adopted, and has had permanent residence and custody with his biological father and adoptive mother"

Michonne refused to even look in Lori's direction.

"You've claimed that, at the time, you were unwell, and in a fragile state from having no contact with the child, and that you were bullied into signing away your rights. You've claimed that the child rebuffed any and all attempts you've made to reconnect, and you think the reason behind that lies with his parents. You've claimed that you've been on the receiving end of abuse from both of the child's parents, and you've also claimed that you don't know how safe the child is as his residing home… You have made a lot of claims"

Michonne's heartbeat appeared to slow down to a healthier pace.

"Then there's you two", The judge looked to Michonne and Rick, "You've claimed that the birth mother willingly signed away her rights. You've claimed that the child chose not to have any relationship with the biological mother, a decision you had no say in. You've claimed that the child's biological mother has been nothing but a pain since returning to the picture and you've also claimed that the birth mother filed the case maliciously, and that she holds ulterior motives"

Her knee began to bounce again, but Rick gave her a little squeeze.

"It's quite extraordinary. I don't think I've ever come across a scenario like this…", The judge sat back in his chair, his eyes darting over to Lori, "I have a few questions to ask you Miss Hindley, the first being, about the child you actually have custody of…"

Lori sat up straighter in her seat, "Yes"

"It was brought to my attention that you've not had a smooth sailing agreement in place with the father?"

"No. We're fine now though, We're able to co-parent for-"

"I understand you ran away with her at one point, sometime last year, if I'm correct?"

Her eyes widened a fraction, "I didn't exactly run away with her-"

"Her father wasn't aware. He filed a police report, which I have right here actually…", The man opened one of the folders in front of him and retrieved the report. Rick's eyes slid over to his wife's, and she gave him a quick, knowing look, while the Judge continued, "You brought the girl to the next town over, where you were staying with your sister?"

"I did, and I did leave a message for her father-"

"Even if I were to believe that, such a subject shouldn't be shared via 'message', you don't have the right to interfere with the visitation schedule set by a court, unless special circumstances allow so. Failure to properly inform the other parent is a serious matter, and I'd hope that you understand why I can't overlook such a thing, especially when you've file something like this"

Lori's eyes didn't leave the man's face.

"Now, don't mistake what I've said, because even without this police report sat in front of me, most judges wouldn't dare reinstate rights to parent that signed them away. Claiming you felt pressured or bullied into doing would be a matter to consider, if it didn't take you over a decade to file a complaint", The man shook his head as he gave her a pointed look.

"Excuse me, your honour", Lori cleared her throat, "But can I please explain why it took me so long to file this?"

"The child is in fact a teenager, am I correct?"

"...Yes, he is"

"The first time you had contact with him was last year, shortly after moving with your daughter to the neighbouring town, where the police found you, correct?"

Her tone was strained, "Yes"

"And you respected the fact that he didn't wish to have a relationship with you? As I understand he has had regular contact with your other child but you kept your distance?"

Lori nodded, "Yes, I kept back and I tried to understand his decision-"

"Then why are we here?", The Judge rested his forearms on the table, clasping his hands together, "Unless he changed his mind, I want to know what's brought you here?"

She hesitated, "B-because I've always wanted to get my son back, I've never stopped thinking about him, but it's been difficult and I think that they have made it even more difficult for me-"

"I understand that these people gave you a small loan to help you move?"

Lori's eyes widened once again, "He did, but it wasn't to help me move"

"Then what was it for?"

The woman looked from the Judge, to Rick and Michonne, realising that she had to either tell the truth about her lie, or play along, "It was… sorry, I'm mistaken, it was to help me move"

"That's a very generous thing to do then, wouldn't you agree?"

"It was", She admitted with reddened cheeks.

"And I understand that you invited their other child to your child's birthday, they've invited your child their child's birthday…", He threw his hands up in the air, "I'm honestly struggling to understand why you thought this was necessary?"

"I've seen how Mr Grimes talks to my son", She blurted out, "I'm worried about him"

"I read that part of your complaint, that would be the incident…", The judge looked through his sheets again, his dark eyes quickly scanning over a piece of paper, "When his father caught him skipping school? Am I correct?"

"Yes"

The judge looked at Rick, "I hope you dealt with him accordingly, Sheriff? You don't want that to become a habit"

"I did", Rick rasped firmly, "I'd like to think that he's not crazy enough to do that again"

"Good to hear", The judge looked back at Lori, "So you witnessed the boy getting a scolding for skipping school and that gives you reason to believe that he's unsafe?"

"I don't agree with how he was spoken to", Lori insisted firmly.

"I think you'll find yourself speaking in a questionable manner when you have a teenager in your home", The judge snickered, placing the sheet down, "Miss Hindley, I believe that you may very well like to have a relationship with the child involved, but it seems that the choices you're making to do so are all wrong, and If the boy is aware of what's taking place here, then I imagine this has only made matters worse. His parents appear to be very reasonable people, and I think it's great that you're allowing your children to know each other. You shouldn't eject tensions into that with things like this"

Lori's shoulders fell, "I wasn't-"

"I would also like to advise you to think hard about any over complaints you wish to file in the future. I don't understand why your other child's father didn't press charges for your deplorable act, but I will make sure that these files are made easily accessible if you do decide to return here"

The other woman didn't attempt to speak, instead she kept her mouth clamped shut.

"Well", The judge smiled as he gathered his papers into a pile, "I hope you all are able to get along for the sake of the children involved. Thank you and case dismissed"

Lori's mouth hung open as her chest heaved, her eyes darting between all the faces in the room, while relief washed over Michonne, and she was overwhelmed with emotion, "Thank you, Ezekiel"

"My pleasure", The man grinned as he stood up, "Enjoy the rest of your day. And please, tell Andrea that she can stop leaving messages with my secretary now. Anymore and I would have had to call the police."

Her smile tightened, "I will"

"Thank you", Ezekiel stepped away from the table, heading towards the door.

Rick rose from his seat, holding Michonne's hand as he helped her up, "How are feeling?"

"Like I can finally breath", She sighed, holding her purse in her other hand, "Weeks of worrying... over in a matter of minutes"

He glanced in Lori's direction as the other woman hopped out of her seat and stormed out of the room after Ezekiel, "We barely had to say anythan'... Hey, stop that"

Michonne dropped her head against his chest as tears rolled down her cheek, "I'm just so glad it's done"

"I know", He huffed, wrapping his arms around her, "I'm so proud of you"

She frowned, her voice muffled, "Why?"

"Because you really dug up the dirt", He sniggered, "I was surprised when he brought up all that stuff"

She smiled against him, "I hoped it would come in handy"

"Remind me not to look far whenever I need a lawyer"

"I'll charge you if you do come to me"

A snort of laughter left him, "I bet you will"

She happily sighed against him, melting into his hold, "I don't want her anywhere near any of us ever again, Rick"

"She won't. I'll make sure of that", He agreed sternly.

"Good."

"You did fantastic", He pressed his lips against hers temple, giving her a soft, little kiss.

"Thank you", She beamed, but only for a moment, as she began to recoil from him, "God, your cologne is too strong"

"You bought this for me", He furrowed his brows at her.

She blocked her nostrils with her Index finger, "It's making me nauseous"

"I forgot you were a bloodhound now", He blew a calming breath, "I won't wear it for another six months then"

"Thanks. Come on, I'm hungry", She stepped around her chair, "You can take me to lunch before my appointment"

"Yes ma'am"

…

"So the whole family get to see the baby today! Aren't you both excited to see your little brother or sister?"

Judith grinned from her father's arms, "Yep... Where is it?"

The nurse chuckled as she took hold of the wand, swirling around in her chair to face Michonne, "You are about to see. I'll show you on the screen..."

"How do you know if it's a boy or a girl?"

The nurse opened her mouth to speak, but swiftly snapped it shut when she caught sight of Rick, who was slowly shaking his head. She appeared to give her answer some serious thought, "Well… little boys have… they're… they are shaped differently from little girls"

Judith seemed to accept that reply, "Okay"

Michonne looked up at Carl, who held her hand tightly, "You okay?"

He nodded, still glowing from the news about the court case, "Yeah. This is actually pretty cool"

"Are we going to the pet store after this?", Judith quizzed, tilting her head at Rick.

Michonne frowned at her daughter, "What for?"

Rick appeared to avoid looking at her, but Judith happily answered, "For my rat! Like in ratatouille!"

Michonne's eyes nearly bulged, "A rat? Wh-"

"And now let's take a look at this little bundle", The nurse announced, placing the tip of the wand against her exposed stomach.

She tore her gaze away from her husband to look at the screen, making a mental note to question him later. Her heartbeat slowly increased as she realised she was about to see the baby. Her baby. She was nervous to say the least, but after everything else her family had been through, it was a little less scary.

"Can you see it? This little body here?"

"Whoa", Carl breathed, looking to the other members of his family, "That's… amazing"

"Is that it?", Judith squinted at the screen, "Are you sure that's the baby?"

The nurse chortled, "I'm very sure, honey"

"...My aunt Maggie had a baby and she didn't look like that"

"Well your little brother or sister will look like your aunt's baby when they're born, but just not right now. Now, they're really small"

Judith looked at the woman strangely, then whispered to her father, "I _don't_ think that's the baby"

"That's the baby, sweetie", He whispered back with a grin, before turning his attentions to Michonne, "You okay?"

She nodded, her eyes stinging as she looked at the sonogram adoringly, "Yeah"

Knowing her baby was healthy and developing well put Michonne's mind at ease, and seeing the tiny limbs flail occasionally made her heart warm. It was as if the wall that she had built between herself and her pregnancy had been broken, and she was able to fall in love with the child she harboured. The guilt she carried for the son she lost hadn't been completely eradicated, but she wasn't sure if that would ever be the case. Until then, she knew she could still love the new addition all the same.

"Hi baby!", Judith yelled, looking down at her mother's stomach, "It's me! Judith!"

Rick groaned as he put her down on the floor, "It was only a matter of time before that happened"

Having Carl and Judith with them only made the event more special. She initially thought the idea wasn't a good one, as she wasn't sure how she would react, but she was glad she listened to her husband, and as they strolled through the parking lot back to their vehicle, she was sure to let him know, "Thank you"

He peered down at her, and she could tell that it took him a moment to understand what she was talking about, but it soon clicked, "Just doing my job"

She rested her head on his bicep as she held his forearm, "And I love you for that"

"Just for that?"

"For a lot of things…", She gently squeezed his forearm, "You've been amazing. Perfect, in fact. I don't know what I'd do without you"

He smirked, "Well I hope you threw out that damn 'toy' you got from Andrea, so I won't have to guess"

"...You didn't have a problem with me using it though?", She countered, "In fact, if I remember correctly-"

"You liked the other night, right?"

Michonne eyed the side of his face suspiciously, "Of course I did"

He looked out in front of them as he nodded, "Alright"

"...You think I didn't?"

"I'm just asking"

She didn't completely believe that. The fact that he even bothered to ask such a question, told her that he was still a little doubtful, but she was sure to put his fears to rest as soon as she got the opportunity. In the meantime, she had other matters you attend to, "Why does Judith think she's getting a pet rat?"

The arm she held tensed, and he groaned quietly, "Because I may have told her-"

"You did not-"

"I did"

Michonne couldn't react the way she normally would have, so instead she used a forced light tone, "Well I guess you're going to have to tell her that you were mistaken, and that we can't have a rodent in the house"

"I can't do that to her. She's so excited about it, she even cleared some space in her room for the cage", He looked down as her as he pleaded for his daughter.

Her eyes narrowed, "I can't believe I even have to say this to you, but she is not getting a pet rat, Rick"

"Would you rather a rat in a cage, or a dog running free?"

"How about _neither_? That's also an option, you know?", She cocked her head at him, "Just because she asks for it, doesn't mean she has to get it"

His eyebrows sprung up, "Do I detect a little attitude?"

Her lips pursed together in annoyance, "We are not getting a rat"

"Look, we'll see what kind of care they need, decide if that's somethan' we think she can handle, then we'll let her take on the responsibility of looking after one"

"We don't have to decide if that's something she can handle because she won't handle it. You know how Judith is, she asks for a pet after any movie with an animal in it. Remember the bee? Remember when she wanted a bee, Rick?"

"I remember when she tried to catch one", He bit his lip in a bid to stop a little chuckle leaving him.

Her expression didn't change, "If you bring a rat home, then I swear to god-"

"That sounds like a _threat_ ", He deadpanned, "I don't think Aaron would appreciate that"

"I don't think you'll appreciate sleeping in the cage with the rat-"

"You better not drop her", Rick warned Carl, ignoring Michonne as he watched the teen spinning Judith around as they reached the car.

"I never do", His son responded, still turning with the girl in his arms, "Can we get something to eat? I'm hungry"

"Me too!", Judith managed to eject through a fit a giggles, "I want a hot dog!"

"The rat topic is not over", Michonne sighed, looking up at Rick, "But I've still got your card, so we might as well go out to eat. Again."

He scoffed, speaking in a dry, sarcastic, "You've still got my card? I'm so surprised to hear that"

She cackled evilly, tugging him to walk further, "Come on, let's get you some fancy 'land steak'"

His laughter rang out, and it made her heart warm to see him smile, "Yes ma'am"


	52. Chapter 52

**Chapter 52:**

 _'I'll make it for you'_

"...I thought about killing him. I never thought the day would come that I'd want to harm a hair on that boy's head, but dammit Rick, I honestly thought about it"

Rick sighed down the phone as he pinched his nose bridge, "What happens now? What did her parents say?"

"They were talking about adoption… said they've already talked to her about it and they think it's best for everyone involved"

"Adoption?", He frowned, "That's… that's somethan' different all together, you know that right?"

"I know, I've been thinking about it since", Jeffrey stressed, "My first grandchild out there… with a whole different family"

"...Mom's gonna' have somethan' to say about that. She'd probably volunteer to raise the child as her own"

"I know, I've been thinking about that too. I might not tell her until after everythan's set in stone"

"That's… that's probably a bad idea, but I get it. What's Gerald got to say?"

"Nothing. Not a God damn thang. He's been in a state of shock since she confirmed it"

"I'm not surprised. He fathered a child at fifteen years old, there ain't much you can say after that"

"I was looking out in the backyard this morning, deciding if I should bury him by the fence or near the tree"

Laughter erupted from Rick, "Oh I've been there. When I heard Carl had an attitude with his mother, I was wondering which window to throw him out of"

Jeffrey chuckled down the line, just as Daryl strolled in his office, waving a small piece of paper in his hand.

"I gotta' get back to work, but keep me updated-"

"Alright, will do", Jeffrey replied.

Rick hung up his cell phone and chucked it on his desk, looking at his best friend curiously, "What's that?"

"Reminder about the reunion this weekend", Daryl informed, throwing himself down in the chair in front of the desk.

"Oh. Oh."

"You forgot all about that?"

"I didn't even see the invitation. Michonne probably has it"

"Sasha's looking forward to seeing everyone. I don't know why, I'm sure she didn't like anyone"

"I'm sure she didn't", Rick snickered picking up one of the reports in front of him, "I think Michonne's the only one looking forward to this"

"She excited to see her twin?"

"Her twin?", He repeated with a confused tone, "Who's her twin?"

"Mrs Hanson", An evil smile graced Daryl's face.

Rick stilled his narrowing at the man, "What?"

He scoffed, "Well if Michonne was twenty years older-"

"They don't look alike", Rick couldn't hide the slight disbelief from his tone, "No? No, they don't. They have similar hair and that's it."

"...If you say so", Daryl sniggered, tapping the invite on the arm of his chair.

Rick tried his best to conjure up an image of his former teacher and his wife side by side, and he was struggling to see the resemblance that his friend spoke of. Michonne eyes could be doll like at times, framed with dark lashes and radiating warmth when she was happy. Rick couldn't exactly remember if Mrs Hanson's had the same striking quality, but he was too busy smiling as he thought of his wife to care, that was until he felt his cell phone vibrate on the desk again.

"Mrs Grimes?", He purred, happy to receive a call from the woman in question.

"I need you to get the kids today, Andrea went home sick and she had meetings scheduled for this afternoon that she couldn't cancel so I'm taking over for her and I probably won't finish on time to get them", His wife explained tiredly.

"Shouldn't you be resting? What's wrong with Andrea? Is it death or death?"

"Don't you mean life or death?"

"No. I mean death or death because she will never get a life", Rick replied dryly, causing a chuckle to burst from Daryl's lips.

"Stop it! You big bear!", Michonne chastised sternly, "She's seriously sick, she looked terrible when she came in and It's only a for few hours, I should be home before dinner"

"Alright, fine. I got it, don't worry about them", He huffed, playing with the pen in his hand.

"Thank you, and please make sure you check with Mike how Judith's been doing in her classes today"

He frowned at the pen as he spoke, "Why? What's wrong? Somethan' happened?"

"Nothing serious, he just said that she's been a little distracted lately and he usually doesn't have that problem with her-"

He snorted in disbelief, "Distracted? Nah, that can't be right-"

"Yes, Rick. He said she hasn't been applying herself like she usually does in class-"

"I've seen her in class and I can tell you that she is an absolute angel. She does her work, she listens, she has no problem keeping up with instructions but she'll ask for help if she needs it-"

"You've seen her in class _once,_ Rick, and that was when you were pretending to be a teacher-"

"Even before I walked in that room, I saw her sat at her desk, like the good little girl she is-"

"Oh my god", His wife groaned, "You know that Judith sometimes has the attention span of a fish-"

"You must be talking about another little girl called Judith, because my daughter pays attention. She's smart, she's focused and she loves to learn-"

"You know what? I'm going now, I have work to do-"

"And why are you even listening to Mike? He hasn't been her teacher long enough to know how she works, he barely even knows her. Has he even taken into consideration that maybe it's his lessons? Maybe he's not a good teacher? Judith has to enjoy somethan' in order to really put her all in, and if she isn't enjoying the class then that's on him, not her-"

"Yep, okay, got it. Goodbye, Rick"

Michonne hung up the phone, leaving Rick to feel annoyed as he muttered to himself, "Not my daughter".

…

"You know, I'm old enough to go to school and come home on my own now. I could even pick up Judith."

Rick rolled his eyes over to his son, who was sat in the passage seat of his truck, "I'd rather drop you off and pick you up personally"

Carl huffed as he slouched downward, "None of my friends get picked up by their parents"

"That's great. I'm so happy to hear that", The words left his mouth dripped in sarcasm, "Please, tell me more?"

Carl shot him a brief side eye.

He sniggered at his son, "You should enjoy this while it lasts. As soon as you move out, I'm changing all the locks on the doors, and I'm changing me and your mother's cell phone numbers, so you're on your own"

The teen couldn't catch his chuckle in time, "You'd both miss having me around"

"You're right. I'd miss coming home to an empty fridge", He joked, unfastening his seatbelt as he prepared to exit the vehicle, "And I'd miss stepping into that hazardous area you call a room-"

"It's not that bad"

Rick looked at him with disbelief, "I hope that by the time you get your own place, you learn how to use a vacuum and some bleach, and not that light stuff either, the industrial kind"

"Very funny, dad"

"I wish I was joking, son", He left the teen in his car, and strolled towards the school building to get Judith, giving other parents a brief smile along the way.

Rick hadn't seen Mike since the incident with Pete Anderson at the school, and after the other unfortunate incident with Michonne calling out the man's name, he didn't particularly want to. He knew that Mike hadn't actually done anything wrong to warrant the hate that Rick felt for him, but that didn't stop him from doing so, and when he finally came face to face with the man in his daughter's classroom, he had to force himself to be civil, which in Rick's case meant, not hitting him.

"Daddy!", Judith chimed, skipping over to him with a large smile, "How come you're here? Where's mama?"

"She had to stay at work, sweetie", He informed softly, leaning down to greet her with a kiss on the forehead. His eyes rolled up to meet Mike's as he straightened up, "My wife told me what your worries are with my daughter?"

"Oh, yes", Mike nodded, "She's just a little distracted in class so I'm trying to encourage her to pay attention, let her know that she has recess to play with her friends-"

"Are you saying that she's playing around when she's not meant to?", Rick narrowed his eyes at him.

Mike's brows knitted together in confusion, "Uh, no, not that at all, but she does seem to daydream a lot. I've caught her staring off into space a few times-"

"She's eight years old, what do you expect from her?"

"...I expect her to try to follow what's going on so she doesn't fall behind-"

"She is more than capable of keeping up, I can promise you that", Rick cocked his head to the side, his words laced with threat, while Judith watched the exchange with a pensive expression.

"I'm very aware that she is capable of keeping up, and I know that Judith is a very bright little girl, and I don't have any concerns about the quality of her work-"

"Then what's the problem, Mike?"

Mike looked at Rick strangely as he squinted at him, "I… I really don't know?"

Rick peered down at his daughter, "Do you wanna' go get all your stuff together, honey? I just need to have a little talk with your teacher"

Judith eyes him suspiciously as she nodded, "Okay"

"Thank you", Rick beamed as he watched her step away cautiously.

"...Mr Grimes, I can see that your daughter means a lot to you-"

"More than a lot", Rick nearly growled, looking back at the man with cold eyes, "She's my little girl, my sweet little angel, which means I have very limited patience for anyone who doesn't see her potential-"

"I believe she has a lot of potential, and I've told Michonne this when we-"

Rick slowly inhaled as he no longer listened to the man speak, "Mike, I'm not sure if you've picked up on this, because subtly isn't something I specialise in, but I do not like you, at all"

The man's mouth snapped shut.

"The only thang that's stopping me from hitting you are the consequences, because my wife will probably be very angry at me if I did, and I don't like it when my wife's angry, _especially_ when she's pregnant", Rick explained in an eerily calm tone, "So until the day my daughter decides to be disruptive in class, how about you and I keep our conversations to the bare minimum whenever I'm the one to collect her. Deal?"

Mike still looked confused, his eyes darting all over Rick's face as if he were trying to comprehend what was going through his mind, "Uh, ok-"

"That's great. Alright, come on sweetie", Rick called his daughter with a delightful tone, "Let's go"

"Bye, Mike!", Judith cheered, taking hold of Rick's hand as she joined them.

"Uh, yeah, bye Judith, see you tomorrow", Mike huffed, resting his hands at his sides as he tried to make sense of the situation.

Rick was genuinely proud of himself for not allowing his temper to take hold of him, and he almost skipped back to his truck, hand in hand with his little girl, until she uttered the words that brought him crashing back down to reality, "Daddy, why did you tell Mike that you don't like him?"

He froze in horror, "You heard that, sweetie?"

She nodded, her braids bouncing on her shoulders, "Yep. Why do you want to him?"

"Oh god", Rick muttered to himself, removing his hand from back door handle as he crouched down in front of her, "Judith, I don't really wanna' hit him, and I actually do like Mike, it's just that we have… the kind of friendship where we say thangs like that to each other. It's a joke, do you understand?"

The girl blinked at him, "That's not very nice. Mama doesn't like stuff like that"

Rick inwardly groaned, "You know what, why don't we go to the pet store and get you that hamster?"

Her eyes lit up as she gasped, "You mean my rat?!"

"That's it, the rat. Let's go get you that pet rat"

Judith jumped up and punched the air, "Yes!"

…

"...Mom is going to flip"

Rick didn't even bother to look at Carl, "That may very well be the case"

They both stood in Judith's bedroom doorway, watching as the little girl sat in front of her new pet. The rodent ran around its cage eagerly, inspecting his new surroundings, while Judith wore a crazed smile as she kept repeating, "It's so cute!"

Carl's eyes slid over to his father, "She's seriously going to flip, dad"

"I'm aware of that, Carl", Rick insisted with a hint of firmness.

"It's a rat. It's a huge rat"

Rick shifted his stance as he exhaled through his nose, "She wanted the biggest one"

"Didn't that woman say they sometimes bite?"

He shuddered, "Somethan' like that"

"...So what did you do?"

Rick's eyes trailed over to his son's, "What do you mean?"

Carl tilted his head at his father, looking at him with a blank expression, which immediately told Rick that his son saw through his spontaneous act of kindness.

He averted his gaze back to Judith was he lowered his voice, "She heard me threaten her teacher"

Carl's mouth fell agape while his eyes widened, "Why?"

"I just don't like him", Rick shrugged, "He annoys me"

The teenager stared at the side of his face for a few moments before finally responding in a monotone, "Mom's going to kill you"

Rick shot him a brief warning glance, about scold him for pointing out the obvious yet again, when he remembered an important discussion he planned to have with his son, "Come on, need to talk to you"

The amusement vanished from Carl's eyes, "I didn't do it"

"Just come on", He led the teen back to his bedroom, where much to Rick's horror, his son's room had reverted back to its disastrous state. Carl flung himself down on his bed, while Rick sat at his desk, trying not to let the mess distract him, "I spoke with your uncle Jeffrey today"

Carl's shoulders fell, "Yeah?"

"Yep. He spoke to Lauren and her parents and. .", He spoke softly, "It turns out they are expecting a baby"

His son quickly dropped his gaze, his brows furrowing together angrily, "Great"

"Hey, it's not great. It's not great at all, it's really… it's sad. They feel like putting the child up for adoption is the best option here and… it's all just a very sad state of events, but I'm sorry to have to tell you that. I'd hope that you'd be able to speak to your cousin about it one day-"

"I don't want to talk to him", His son's eyes bolted up to meet his, and in that moment, Rick saw something in his son that reminded him of himself, which was only a little unnerving.

"You don't have to now. You don't have to anytime soon, in fact, but one day, maybe even years from now, you might have to. Despite what he's done, he's still your cousin, someone you've grown up with, and you're gonna' want some closure with this-"

"Did you?"

Rick stilled as he prepared to answer truthfully, "At first I did, for a while, but then over the years, I lost interest in the idea, until I saw Shane again and I spoke to him… it helped. I would never admit that to him but it did, especially since he's your sister's father and I have to work with him"

Carl expression only softened by a small degree, "I get that"

"I'm glad you do", Rick sighed as he ran his hands over his face, "And I'm glad we can talk about things like this without your mother. She'd like that"

Carl smirked, "...I guess you should lead with that when you tell her about the rat-"

"Everybody in this family is a damn comedian", Rick breathed as he stood up, "Order pizza or somethan' for dinner"

"Alright", His son nodded, reaching in his back pocket to retrieve his phone while Rick left the room.

It would be fair to say that he had managed to walk himself into an undesirable position, all while trying his best not to upset his wife. When he woke beside her that morning, he took a rare chance to admire her new form while she still slept, and it filled him with warmth and excitement for their future, but now he wasn't even sure if he would have a future, once his wife discovered the choices he had made in her absence.

He didn't have much time to consider how he would speak to her, as she arrived home shortly after he changed out of his uniform, and he nearly sprinted out of their bedroom to stop her from going anywhere near Judith's room.

"Hey…", He breathed, stopping at the bottom of the stairs, where she was pulling off her heels, "You alright?"

"I'm so tired", She huffed, dropping the shoes by her briefcase, "And I'm starving. Where are the kids?"

"In their rooms. Carl ordered pizza. Should be here any minute", He explained gently as he stepped closer to her, taking hold of her waist when she lifted her arms up for a hug, "Long day?"

"Too long", She huffed, wrapping her arms around his shoulders, "...I don't want pizza"

"Yeah? What do you want then?"

"...Maybe pasta…"

"Alright, go sit down, I'll make it for you"

She tilted her head back to look at him, "Yeah?"

"Yeah. Go on"

"Thank you", She grinned, placing a soft kiss on his cheek, "I can get used to this. I need to get you an apron-"

"Very funny", He spun her around to face the couch, giving her ass a friendly tap to urge her to walk, "Go on"

Rick watched her stroll into the lounge for his own selfish purposes, as he loved to admire her from behind, and he was just about to make his way towards the kitchen, when he heard his daughter's voice hissing, "Remi? Remi! Where _are_ you?!"

He shot up the stairs in the blink of an eye, hoping Judith was speaking to one of her toys, and not her new pet. He found her in her bedroom doorway, on her hands and knees as she looked towards him.

"...I let Remi out so he could see my room, but now I can't find him daddy?".


	53. Chapter 53

**Chapter 53:**

 _'Don't do that, please?'_

"Rick, I know I said I'm tired but really, you don't need to carry me everywhere, I can walk just fine", Michonne stared at the side of her husband's head as he carried her up the stairs.

"You need to rest", He insisted for a countless time, continuously trying to look around his feet.

"Are you scared you're going to drop me or something? Am I heavy now?"

"No, no", He shook his head, as they reached the landing, "It's just toys… Judith had some… toys out earlier…"

She frowned at him, "On the stairs?"

"Kids", He shrugged, continuing to the bedroom, just as Carl stepped out the bathroom, and Michonne immediately burst out laughing when she saw her son's outfit.

"Why is your shirt tucked into your pants like that? And your socks too? Are you cold?", She quizzed.

"Freezing", Carl nodded hurriedly, though seemingly distracted, "Especially my hands… I need some gloves or something... Uh, dad? The bathrooms clear- clean. It's clean"

"Good job, son", Rick called back as he stepped in their bedroom.

"You can put me down now", She huffed, but he still carried her over to the bed, and proceeded to put her down gingerly.

"What pyjamas are you wearing?"

She frowned at him a second time, "I will choose them myself, Rick"

He kept his gaze low as he nodded, "Alright, fine, go ahead"

She eyed him suspiciously, "What's going on? Why have you been hovering around me all evening?"

"I have not been hovering-"

"Yes, you have-"

"You're my wife, so is that a bad thang if I was?"

She narrowed her eyes at him, "What did you do?"

"Nothing, I just don't want you on your feet right now", He explained glancing around the room.

"...Did you break something?"

His eyes locked on hers, "Is my name _Michonne_?"

She grabbed a pillow from behind her and threw it at him, "Very funny!"

He took the pillow and chucked back on the bed as he snickered, "Just tell me when you're ready to go to bed"

"Why?"

"So I can come to bed too", He replied as if it was the most obvious answer, "Is that alright with you?"

"That's just fine with me, Rick", She purred, watching him look around as he backed out of the room.

Michonne could tell her husband was up to something, but the truth of the matter was, she was too preoccupied to care. She had made a mental note to show her husband some special attention in the bedroom, and she planned on doing just that, despite the fact that she was borderline exhausted.

Knowing Carl was in his room, and Judith was fast asleep in her bed, Michonne had a quick shower, lathering up with her favourite scented body wash before slipping into just a large t-shirt. She knew Rick would be coming to bed soon enough, and so she sat waiting for him, wrapping her hair in a bun for the night's events.

"Carl gone to bed?"

"Yep", She answered cheerfully when he walked in the room, moving to kneel.

"Alright…", He closed the bedroom door, his eyes darting all over the room, "You should get some rest, too"

"Nope", She shook her head playfully as she bounced on the spot, "I'm not ready to sleep just yet"

Rick looked at her with an expression that she could only describe as scornful, "Tonight? You wanna' do somethan' tonight?"

Michonne pulled the t-shirt over her head, "Just get over here"

His eyes trailed up and down her body greedily, his grip on the doorknob tightening, but he exhaled tiredly, "We don't have to if you don't want to… we can go to sleep?"

Her smile faded away, "I shaved, get over here"

Michonne was taken aback to hear him groan as he began popping the buttons off his shirt, "Alright, alright… fine"

She moved closer to the edge, grabbing him by his belt buckle when he was close enough, "What is going on with you? Usually I just have to blink and you're in the mood"

"It's been a long… long… long day", He huffed, dropping his shirt on the ground, but quickly breaking away from her as he picked it up again, "I should probably put this on the chair…"

"Oh just get over here", She had him by the belt buckle again, wrapping it from his jean loops, then getting to work on his fly.

"...Have you got somewhere to be after this?", He questioned, narrowing his eyes at the top of his wife's head.

"Yeah, sleeping", She smirked, yanking his jeans down with his boxers, exposing his semi hard erection. Without using her hands, she dipped her head and caught the tip in her mouth, which earned her a gasp from Rick.

"What the hell…", He breathed, his hand already cupping her jaw, "It's a _Thursday_ , Michonne"

She had to release him before she chuckled, "Don't make me laugh or else unless you want to feel teeth"

"I may regret asking, but why are you doing this?"

It was her turn to groan as she looked up at him, "What do you mean why- what are you looking for?!"

His eyes stopped scanning the room and fell on her, "Nothing, go on, what was you saying?"

"No", She crossed her arms over her bare chest, "Tell me right now, what's going on?"

He began to shake his head, "Noth-"

"Say 'Nothing' one more time and you will sleep on the couch", She ejected dryly as she pulled her t-shirt back on, no longer in the mood to please him.

He growled as he raked his hands through his hair, "I don't need to say it again, I'll probably be sleeping on the couch anyway"

Her face fell, her eyes darting all over his face, and she questioned him once again, with a deeper, more sinister tone, "What did you do?"

Rick yanked his boxers and jeans back up, which Michonne was sure he did as a safety precaution, then finally confessed lightly, "I bought Judith the rat"

Her head jerked back in shock, "What?"

"I bought Judith the rat and she let it out if it's cage, and now it's somewhere in the house... taunting me"

Her mouth sat agape for some time as she stared at him, barely blinking, and making no attempt to move.

"I messed up big here, I know I did, and before you reach for the divorce papers, can I just say that I've tried so hard to find that thing, and you'd think that because it's the size of a small pig, it's should be easy to find, but it's… I don't know where the hell it's gone Michonne, but I will find it, I promise you I will"

Michonne managed to narrow her eyes at him, "There's a large rat running around my house?"

He bowed his head, sitting his hands at his sides, "There is"

She was so livid that she could hardly finish a sentence, "After… you know that I don't like… and you still-"

"I wasn't thinking. I really wasn't thinking at all"

She leaned forward, tilting her head to catch her husband's gaze as she whispered menacingly, "Do you realise how _close_ you are to death right now?"

"Yeah, Carl reminded me nearly ten times today- Look, I'm sorry", He insisted, pinching his nose bridge with his thumb and index finger, "I will fix this"

"Oh, you will fix this", She scoffed, about to climb off the bed, but her fear of rodents reminded her not to do that.

"Just wait here and-"

"Find it, put it back in its cage and take it back to whatever jungle you wrestled it from, or so help me, Rick I will-"

"Kill me and make it look like an accident", He finished for her, raising his hands in the air as he backed out of the room, "I got it"

…

"Okay now just hold on, it's a tiny bit snug-"

Michonne bowed her head, feeling defeated, "I knew it"

"Now hold on a minute, it's just a little snug", Maggie insisted, fighting with the zipper of her dress, "I want to be careful because I'm pretty sure I've damaged quite a few dresses of yours…"

"It won't fit, I'm going to have to buy a new one-"

"Wait! It's going up!", Maggie cheered as she pulled the zip past the tightest area, "Okay, I don't know _how_ I'm going to get this off you, but we got it on and that's the main thing"

Michonne huffed as she stepped away from her friend, "What do you think?"

Maggie took a step back, admiring the tight fitting black dress with a split up the back, "It's a lovely little thing, Rick's going to love it… well, if you don't kill him first"

"He can admire it while I kill him", Michonne looked in Maggie and Glenn's bedroom mirror, "You should have seen me running around the house this morning, I was scared to stay on the ground too long so I brushed my teeth while crouching on the bathroom counter"

The brunette burst into a fit of giggles, "I can't believe he bought her a rat? Why not a dog? Or even a cat?"

"Because he likes sleeping on the couch", Michonne answered flatly as she hunched over in the mirror, "I didn't think I was showing this much…"

"You are. Little Andre or Andrea is cooking just fine", Maggie took a seat on the bed, where Demi was sat in her car seat, sucking on her thumb.

"Andrea told you about the names then?"

"I'd like to think you'd name any subsequent children you have after me, too"

"I think Rick would prefer that", Michonne chuckled, twisting and turning in the mirror, "I actually can't wait to see some of the people that were in his class… I would have loved to have seen him as a teenager"

"I remember he and my brother running around town together with Shane… He did great in school though", Maggie insisted, taking her youngest daughter in her arms, "He was a little punk but he was always helping people out. I remember he went down to Beth's school with my brother when some idiot was trying to bully her"

Michonne peered over her shoulder at her friend, "Really?"

"Yep", Maggie grinned, "He always used to randomly turn up at the school after that, just as a reminder"

Michonne smirked as she smoothed her dress down, "That sounds like something he'd do now"

"Yeah. Judith has all that to deal with…", Maggie began to bounce Demi on her lap, "You know I was thinking about getting sterilised…"

Michonne whipped her head around to look at her again, "Oh?"

"Yeah. I'm pretty tired now"

"Well you have three kids under five, you should be. What does Glenn think?"

Maggie scoffed, "He thinks it's a bad idea. He wants us to wait a few more years and then have more…"

"...I can imagine you with at least six", Michonne squinted at her as she conjured up the image of her friends surrounded by kids.

Maggie shook her head in horror, "Glenn would have to take me down with some horse tranquilizers first"

Both women were cackling wickedly at her joke when Carl called from the bottom of the stairs, "Mom!? I'm hungry!"

"Me, too!", Judith added from somewhere else in their old home.

"Me, too!", Ally also piped.

Michonne sighed as she looked towards the bedroom door, "Alright!"

"Wanna' cook somethan' up? We got burgers", Maggie suggested, climbing off her bed, "We can put them on the grill"

"Yeah, if you don't mind? But you have to peel this off me first", Michonne turned her back to expose the zipper.

"Oh boy, here we go", Maggie's shoulders fell as she peered down at her daughter, "Mommy's going to try not tear Aunt Mimi's dress again"

Michonne slowly inhaled, "Thanks".

"Aunt Maggie?! I think Cleo filled her diaper?!", Carl called again, sounding a little strained, "And the smell is making me light headed!"

"Bring her up! You can change her in here!", Michonne suggested with an evil grin, then whispering to Maggie, "This should put him off making me grandmother anytime soon"

"You are so bad", Maggie gasped, though she began to mimicked her facial expression, "But that's a good idea"

…

"Uncle Daryl! Are you helping daddy look for Remi?"

Daryl picked Judith up in his arms, giving her one of his crooked smiles, "I am, and we're doing our best but that little son of a-... that little guy..."

"Can I help?", Judith's eyes lit up excitedly.

"Of course you can. We need a lot of help"

Carl peered at his mother as they stopped in the hallway of their home, returning from their afternoon at the Rhee's, "Guess I'm tucking my pants into my socks again"

"Good idea", Michonne nodded, her eyes never leaving the floor around them as she stepped side to side nervously.

"It's alright 'Chonne. I'm sure it's set up shop in the kitchen", Daryl reassured, setting Judith back down.

"In my kitchen?!", She almost screeched, her eyes wide with panic.

Daryl bit his lip as he gave her a confirming nod, followed by an apologetic look. Michonne took the deepest of breath she could as she marched towards the kitchen, the sound of her heels hitting the hardwood floors echoing throughout the ground floor of the home. The only reason she stopped just before the fresh hold, was because Rick had his hand out to stop her from coming any further.

Michonne looked her husband from head to toe as he crouched on a dining chair by the door, his eyes bouncing from one corner of the room to the other. She exhaled so loudly that she was surprised smoke didn't filter through her nostrils, "What are you-"

"It's in here. We saw it", He explained, to wrapped up in the task to look at her, "And he was toying with us at first, running to one side of the room then popping up on the other, and I swear that little son of a bitch had the nerve to look me dead in the eye at one point, but now we've got him. He won't get out of this room now"

Michonne stared at the side of her husband's head throughout his speech, waiting until his was finished to say something, when they were both distracted by a high pitched squeal of delight from Judith, "I found Remi! I got him!"

They found her on the staircase, holding the sizable rodent to her chest as she stroked it with a flat hand, leading Michonne to slap her hand over her mouth as she almost gagged, "You said it was in the kitchen!"

Rick was too busy muttering something incoherent under his breath to answer, looking up to the ceiling with despair, while Daryl snarled at the pet, "It must 'ah snuck right past us"

"He was on the stairs… Look mama, you didn't get to meet him", Judith held the rat by its middle as she showered her mother, who recoiled in horror, "Isn't he cute? Look at his little feet!"

"Okay put it in its cage, sweetie! Carl help her!", Michonne requested in a light, forced tone while taking a large step backwards.

"I don't want to touch it either", Carl frowned from the top of the stairs, but after a brief look at his mother's crazed eyes, he sighed, "Come on, Judes"

Michonne waited until her children had disappeared out of sight to turn to Rick, hissing at him, "You need to take that cage out of her room and put it in the garage"

He rolled his head down to look at her, "Fine, it can go in the garage-"

"And I want this house cleaned from top to bottom", She pointed her finger in both directions, "Every surface bleached"

"And it's time for me to leave", Daryl slipped between the two of them, giving Michonne a farewell nod, "Night 'Chonne"

"Night Dixon, thanks for coming by", She smiled sweetly at him, before turning back to Rick with a nonsense look.

Daryl's eyes widened as he stepped out the front door, leaving Rick to face his wife's wrath by himself. He looked at her with his steely blue eyes, his lips pursed as he awaited the second wave of scolding, but Michonne simply crossed her arms over her chest and sighed as she turned to the stairs.

Rick took hold of her arm, "Don't do that, please?"

She peered down at his hand for a moment, "You must not want this hand-"

"I'm sorry", He stressed, "It was wrong of me to go over your head like that and I shouldn't have let her keep it up in her room-"

"Why did you go over my head like that?", She turned to face him again, squinting as she began to look at the bigger picture.

Something in his demeanour changed, his eyes widening a fraction, and Michonne could see he was considering whether to divulge the reason behind his actions. It took him some time, but he finally exhaled, "I had a little talk with Mike and she may have heard"

"You threatened him?", She pulled out of his hold, "Why?"

Rick furrowed his light brows at her, "Because I don't like him, Michonne"

One of her eyes twitched in frustration, "So?"

"So? What do you expect me to do? Just go in there and play nice with him? He was talking about my daughter like she was a disruptive child- And you wanna' know what's funny? He has no problem calling me Mr Grimes or Judith's dad but he then has the nerve to call you Michonne?", He wore a undeniably serious frown, as if anything he had mention was truly disturbing, "And you expect me not to say anythan' to all that? That little punk knows exactly what he's doing, and I won't stand for it"

Michonne balled her fists in anger, tempted to yell and possibly scream, but choosing to speak in an eerily soft tone instead, because she could tell that her husband wasn't in a receptive mood, "I'm going upstairs now Rick, and I'm going to have a bath-"

"I'm not apologising", He issued firmly, "It's already said and done. He stays out of my way and I won't have to hit him"

She narrowed her eyes at him as she repeated, "I'm going upstairs now, and I'm going to have a bath, _Rick_ "

Her husband blew out a breath like an angry bull as he looked down at her, a silent battle being held with their eyes for a few moments, before the stubborn man finally caved, bowing his head as he motioned towards the stairs.

Michonne faced the stairs once again, stomping up each step heavily as she called back, "You're apologising to him!"

"No, I'm not!"


	54. Chapter 54

**Chapter 54:**

 _'You've got everythan''_

"But how come he has to stay in here? You said I get to keep him in my room?"

Rick watched his daughter stroke the rodent lovingly, holding it against her chest as she looked up at him with her large blue eyes. He sighed, crouching down beside her, "Because we already have a lot of living thangs in the house, and if we keep Remi in the house then daddy would have to sleep here. You don't want daddy to have to sleep in the garage, do you?"

Judith took a moment to answer, her eyes narrowing the same way that her mother's often did, "You could take turns?"

His mouth fell agape in shock, about to question his daughter's solution, when he heard snickering behind him. He peered over his shoulder to see Carl stood nearby, already holding his hands up in surrender, "That was funny"

Rick shook his head in disbelief as he turned back to Judith, "Sweetie, Remi will be perfectly fine in here, okay? You can still come and see him whenever you want, but just let somebody know first… and don't take him out the cage on your own again, in fact keep him off the ground-"

"Can I get a leash for him? So I can take him on walks?", She quizzed, peering down at her pet with adoring eyes.

Rick's upper lip twitched, "I don't think rats like to be on leashes or being walked but how about we look for some more of those tubes...he can run around in those and you can watch him"

"Okay", She nodded, her dark curls bouncing around her face, "I can't wait you show Lily"

"I'm sure Lily will be just as excited about him as you are", Rick stood up and gave her kiss on the forehead, "Remember, not on the ground, or else I'll definitely be joining him in here"

"I did tell you…", Carl pointed out in a sing-song tone.

Rick gave his son a no nonsense look, "Well I hope you remember what I told you"

Carl immediately groaned, "Mom already cooked, all I have to do is heat it up, feed them, let them watch a movie or something then put them to bed-"

"No one comes over and you don't leave", Rick reminded firmly, "The only girls that should be in this house tonight are your sister and Lily, and your grandmother at one point because she said she'd drop by to check on you when she gets the chance, so keep that in mind-"

"I know, dad"

"I'm leaving you money for pizza, and that's it-"

"Got it, dad"

"And if you decide to go to bed then put the box in the trash, not on the coffee table, not on the kitchen counter, not on the-"

"In the trash. Got it"

"If anythan' goes wrong-"

"Call you, and if I can't get through to you then call uncle Daryl, and if I can't get through to him then call Grandpa, and if I can't get through to Grandpa then I take the girls and go to the neighbours, but stay outside in case they try to kidnap us. I know, dad.", Carl explained in one breath, before quickly adding, "Mom added that kidnapping stuff at the end"

Rick eyed him suspiciously for a short time, before giving him a single nod of his head, "Alright. Good"

"You look pretty, mama! Like a movie star!", Judith chimed joyfully, bringing the father and son's attention away from their briefing.

Michonne stood in the doorway wearing a long black Bardot style dress, donned in her favourite diamonds pieces and her dreads swings trailing down her back. Her eyes fell on the rodent, and her smile tightened, "Thank you, honey"

"Yeah, you look great mom", Carl added, chuckling quietly when he noticed her reaction.

"Thank you, Carl", She tore her eyes away from the rat, "Sasha said they're running a little late but they won't be long"

"Okay"

"Alright, let's get this over with then", Rick sighed, tipping his head towards the garage door, "You ready?"

Michonne quite obviously ignored him, giving Carl and Judith a kiss on the cheek as she bid them farewell, before heading out to the truck without a second glance in his direction. He would have groaned but he had a feeling that he should save his energy for the remainder of the evening, and so he left his children to follow his wife.

"You look beautiful"

Despite running the risk of being ignored again after they had been in his truck for five minutes, Rick thought he'd at least try to make amends with her before they arrived at the high school.

Michonne didn't attempt to look in his direction when she shot back a dry, "Thanks."

"Can we not do this now? Can we put this behind us for the night and then you can pick it back up again on the ride home?"

She smirked, "No. You're going to have to talk to people, because you will not be talking to me"

He released the first groan of the night, "That's not nice, Michonne"

"Neither is sharing my home with a baby capybara"

He glanced at her with suspicious eyes, "So you think I'm gonna' just sit back and watch you laugh it up with Mike?"

Her head whipped around to look at him with disbelief, obviously about to refute his outrageous claim, but she stopped herself, and chose to raise a pointed finger at him instead, "Don't."

Rick clenched jaw as he glared at the windshield, "Not on my watch"

"He is your daughter's teacher, Rick-"

"And your ex-boyfriend, the same ex-boyfriend that managed to worm his way into our bedroom-"

"That was my mistake that had nothing to do with him! If you're going to be angry with anyone then it should be me!"

"You want me to be angry at you again?"

"Go right on ahead, but after I'm done being mad at you", She snapped her eyes shut at him as she turned to face the passenger window again.

Rick frowned as he sighed, muttering to himself, "What is it with this family and taking turns?"

The front of the high school was decked with balloons and a banner, and someone had taken on the painstaking task of hanging up pictures from the yearbook across all the lockers that led to the gym. That was one of the first things that annoyed Rick, but amused his wife, as she took pictures of anyone she recognised, holding her phone up and snickering.

The gymnasium was even more nauseating for Rick, as there were even more pictures, and a large majority of the people in the pictures themselves. It was obvious that the people that had moved out of town still recognised him, and most gave him a wide berth as they made their way in the room.

"How y'all doing?", Shane appeared, seemingly out of nowhere.

"Hey, how are you?", Michonne responded warmly, clutching her purse in front of her.

"I'm doing good, glad to see you guys made it because I can't remember half of these people", Shane rubbed his neck as he glanced around the room, "How are the kids?"

"They're doing great, Carl's babysitting"

"Oh, yeah?"

"Yeah, in fact we should really set something up so Milly can stay over soon"

Shane's eyes darted over to Rick, "Uh, sure? I mean, y'all don't mind after the whole-"

"She's still Carl's sister", Rick shrugged, "No court case can change that"

"Exactly", Michonne added.

Rick squinted at his wife, "So you're gonna' agree with me but you're not-"

"Stop it, Grimes", She breathed between gritted teeth, before plastering a smile back on her face as she turned back to Shane, "She's more than welcome to stay over"

The dark haired man tried his best to ignore the tension that radiated from them, "Uh, yeah, sure… we'll make that happen"

"Good"

"Look who it is! You made it!", Mrs Hanson had both hands in the air as she stepped over to them, her white kaftan dress flowing behind her.

"I did", Rick was quickly enveloped in her arms as she hugged him, and though he couldn't see Michonne's reaction, he was sure he could feel the heat from her eyes, "This place looks great"

"Oh thank you, me and few other women have been working on it since last night", Mrs Hanson took a step back, admiring him in his black on black suit when her eyes darted behind him, falling on Michonne with a gasp, "Michonne! Mike told me you would be here! Come here!"

Rick watched his wife get sucked into a hug, and it was in that moment that he saw the two women together, that he finally saw how similar they looked. He released his second groan of the night, knowing that his wife would be sure to bring up the fact when she had the chance to corner him.

"It's great seeing you again. Mike's actually my daughter's teacher-"

"Yes, he told me! Who would have thought that you'd go on to marry one of my favourite students!", Mrs Hanson kept her arm around Michonne, giving her a little squeeze.

"And who would have thought that my husband's favourite teacher would be you!", To anyone else, Michonne would have appeared to have looked over at the man in question with a loving smile, but Rick knew better, "You have left such a lasting impression on him"

"I am so pleased to hear that", Mrs Hanson grinned, "And I really hope you all enjoy yourselves tonight"

"Oh, I plan to"

Rick wasn't sure what he was feeling as he watched the two women converse, but he knew it wasn't anything good, and it was on that note, that he turned to Shane, "Is there any alcohol around here?"

The man shook his head, but reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a flask, "This is as good as it gets. I got more in the car so go ahead"

Rick was almost desperate, "That will do"

Anyone would have thought that Michonne was a student at the school in some point in time, as she was soon speaking with a number of people, floating around the room like some kind of social butterfly, leaving a chorus of laughter wherever she went. Rick found that quality about her endearing, and he was content to leave her to it, while he and Shane took turns pretending to give a damn.

"We finally made it", Sasha huffed as she approached them with Daryl behind her, "You would not believe the evening we had"

"Lily brought a possum in the house", Daryl explained with a crooked smile, "She heard that Judith got a rat"

Rick and Shane tried not to make their amusement apparent, while Sasha growled, "We had to leave every door and window open to get it out"

"I'm sorry about that", Rick offered sincerely.

"Yeah, you should be since it's your fault", She scoffed, dropped her purse on the nearest table, "Where's Michonne? And Maggie said she and Glenn were coming"

"She's around here somewhere, talking to everyone", Rick informed dryly.

"Oh great"

Daryl took out his own flask, taking a swig before holding it out to Rick, who gladly accepted, "I guess I'm the only one that didn't get the memo about bringing your own liquor"

"Hey, great to see you, Sasha", Mike smiled approached the group, "Daryl, Shane… Rick"

Rick couldn't even find the strength to be polite, and chose to stare at the man whilst the other returned the greeting. In spite his wife protests before she stopped speaking to him, he had no intention of apologising to the man, and he was usually a man of his word.

He ignored Mike and quite a few others while he stood around with Shane, Daryl and occasionally Sasha, who would disappear for a few moments, then reappear with a new grievance, which was something Rick could take some entertainment from, but otherwise he was bored.

...

"You think Carl's alright with the girls?"

"Yeah", Daryl answered his wife's question with a shrug, "They ain't much of a handful"

"They should be in bed by now anyway", Rick lifted his hand to look at his watch, "And my mom's staking out the place. She's at some poker night two doors down"

A snort of laughter escaped Sasha, "Poker night?"

"She thinks she has a lucky streak", Rick rolled his eyes, "She lost a couple hundred on the cruise but then won it all back, and somehow that makes her 'lucky'."

"That's some kind of 'luck'...", Daryl sniggered, shoving his hands in his pocket as he surveyed the room.

"More like crazy", Rick exhaled tiredly, his eyes scanning around the room as he looked for Michonne, and quickly spotted her making her way back over to them, speaking with a blonde haired woman that looked familiar, "Who is that?"

"Who?", Sasha followed his line of sight.

"The woman Michonne's heading over here with?"

Shane squinted at the duo, "Ain't that Penny? The girl you dated when-"

"Oh god", Rick growled, his face a picture of disbelief, "It is, ain't it?"

"It is", Daryl agreed, nibbling on his thumb nail, "This night might not be too bad after all"

Rick couldn't even tear his eyes away from his wife and his teenage ex if he wanted to, and instead of looking for a possible escape route, he found himself coming face to face with the two women, giving his wife subtle annoyed look.

"Look who I found", Michonne announced gleefully, "Penny!"

"Hey y'all!", The blonde cheered, "It's so great to see everyone!"

Rick took hold of his wife's wrist and tugged her towards him while the others greeted the woman, giving him a chance to hiss at her, "Are you kidding me, Michonne?"

"I think I like her the most out of all the women you dated", She gave him a charming smile.

One of his eyes twitched with frustration, "I haven't seen those horns of yours in a long time-"

"Oh, a devil reference! You haven't made one of those for a while-"

"Because you've blinded me with your feminine wiles-"

"My _feminine wiles_?", She frowned at him, though the corner of her lips curled up into a teasing smile, "You old southern bell-"

"Rick! It's been years!", Penny came into view, smiling broadly at him.

"Nice to see you, Penny", Rick offered as sincerely as he could.

"You look well! And I heard you're Sheriff now? And you have a couple kids and another on the way?", Penny tilted her head towards Michonne, "Your wife gave me a good update"

"Oh I bet she did", He offered through a forced smile, "Yeah… I've been busy-"

"Sorry to interrupt but can I get a picture for the paper?", The photographer requested, holding up his camera.

"Of course", Michonne chimed, though she stiffened when Rick put his arm around her waist before she could step away.

"I don't know where you think you're going because we are not done here", He whispered.

"Just smile, Grimes", She nearly growled back.

"Can you all get in close?", The man requested, using his hand to guide the others.

"I'll just squeeze in here", Penny giggled, taking a place between Rick and Sasha, "Don't mind lil' ol' me"

Rick began to smile, but immediately froze when he felt a hand on his ass. He peered down at his wife in horror, realising that she would have to be a mutant to be the culprit, as both her hands held her clutch beneath her rounded stomach. His eyes then crept over to Penny, who was grinning at the camera as if she wasn't cupping his backside.

"Say cheese!"

"Cheese!"

Rick said nothing, too busy in a state of shock to do anything. It was only when the woman moved her wandering hand that he could breathe again, feeling truly violated.

"I'm going to get a drink", Michonne huffed, smoothing down the front of her dress.

"She had her hand on my ass", Rick confessed in a breathy, disbelieving tone.

His wife's head jerked back an inch, "What?"

"Penny", He confirmed, "Had her hand on my ass when we just took the picture"

"She had her hand on your ass?", She repeated, her eyes darting behind him, "By accident?"

"There was a degree of gripping involved", He stressed, "It wasn't resting on it, she was like… holding it"

Michonne's eyes narrowed, and she stepped to the side to look past him, "Are you being serious?"

Rick gave his wife the most serious look he could, "She had her hand on my ass, Michonne"

She seemed to be absorbing the weight of his complaint, shifting her position as she slapped her purse against his chest, "Hold this"

Rick was forced to take her clutch, "Uh, Michonne-"

His wife almost barged past him, only having to take a few steps to get to Penny, who was chuckling away with Shane and another person that Rick didn't recognise. Tapping the blonde on the shoulder, Michonne waited until she had her attention to speak, "Did you just put your hand on my husband's ass?"

Penny's eyes widened, "What? What- no-"

"You didn't put your hand on my husband's ass?", Michonne crossed her arms over her chest.

"No! What on earth?", Penny glanced towards Rick, "What are you talking about?"

"He just said you put your hand on his ass"

"Well he's lying, I wouldn't do such a thing", The woman scoffed, flicking her hair over her shoulder, while Rick's mouth hung open in astonishment.

Michonne looked at him, then Penny again, and for the briefest moment Rick wasn't sure who his wife believed, until she stepped closer to the woman with a finger pointed, "Keep your hands away from any part of my husband"

"Well, excuse me?", Penny's eyebrows sprung up in surprise, resting her hand on her hip as she frowned, "Or what? You'll take me out back and-"

Something about seeing his wife cock her fist back, then speeding forward to drive a punch into the women's nose was both worrying and oddly appealing to Rick, but it was mostly worrying as she was pregnant after all, so he hurried over and took hold of her arm.

" _That's_ what!", She spat angrily at Penny, who had fallen back on her butt.

"Jesus", Shane muttered, appearing unsure of what to do with himself as he looked from Michonne to Penny.

"I thought he'd be the one to go off tonight", Daryl joked dryly, acting as an extra barrier between the women, "But the night's still young"

"How about we go for a walk?", Rick suggested, urging his wife to walk in the other direction, "Maybe cool off a little…"

"I think that's a good idea", Sasha agreed, cringing as she looked at Penny.

Michonne huffed, snatching her purse from Rick as she spun around, muttering something unintelligible under her breath. He was secretly pleased that he may have a reason to leave earlier than expected, but his dreams came crashing to a halt when they were intercepted by a concerned looking Mike near the exit.

"Is everything alright? I saw-"

"Fine", She insisted lightly, "Just a misunderstanding...on her behalf"

Rick couldn't exhale any louder, giving Mike an unimpressed look as the man spoke, "Oh… Okay? Well do you need a glass of water or something?"

Michonne looked at her husband, "Rick?"

"Yeah?", He cocked his head at her, knowing exactly why she called his name, "What's the problem?"

She released a low growl before she faced Mike, "My husband would like to apologise for how he behaved towards you when he had to collect Judith"

Mike's eyebrows shot up as he looked at Rick, "Oh really?"

Rick shook his head, "No, I don't want to apologise but since my wife feels that it's necessary then-"

"Rick!", She hissed, balling her fist at her side.

"I'm sorry but can I just ask what I've done to make you feel this way towards me?", Mike questioned, visibly confused, "I think we've only spoken a handful of times-"

"You haven't done anything", Michonne issued, "It's just a slight misunderstanding… on my husband's part, but I can assure you that we both think you're doing a great job with Judith and it has nothing to do with the quality of your teaching"

Mike's eyes lit up, "Oh, well thank you Michonne, and I'd just like to say that-"

Rick was amazed to discover that he could have a knee jerk reaction to Mike using Michonne's name, which caused him to hit the man in the face with a solid fist. It wasn't one of his brightest moments, but he did feel considerably better for it.

Michonne breathed through gritted teeth, "Why did you do that?!"

Rick shook his hand, glancing at his knuckles, "I don't get to use my left hand often"

A few people rushed to Mike's aid, one of them being his mother who looked towards Rick with horror, "What on earth is going on?!"

"I'm so sorry", Michonne gave the older woman an apologetic look, "It was just a misunderstanding-"

She was barely able to finish her sentence, as Mike had found his footing and regained his senses, leading him to lunge for Rick, sending them both crashing into the nearest table. While it may not have been the ideal situation for those that were sat nearby, Rick was in his element, so much so that his hissed to Mike with a menacing smile, "Bring it on".

…

"That hurts Michonne"

Rick was sure he noticed his wife smirk when he complained, tending to his battle scars in the bathroom of their home.

"Well it's going to hurt. You guys were hitting each other back and forth for a solid minute", She pointed out flatly, slapping a plaster on his cheek.

Rick frowned as he came to realise something, his eyes darting away from her for the briefest of moments, "...He's actually not that bad of a guy..."

Michonne squinted at him as she stilled, "What is wrong with you?"

He shrugged nonchalantly, "The man can fight, I have to give it to him. We came away about the same…"

"You are ridiculous, you know that right?", She slammed the first aid kit shut, "This is why I'm still mad at you-"

"Stop", He took hold of her wrist before she could walk away, "I get it and I'm sorry, alright? I messed up yet again, and I shouldn't have hit him for using your name but I think you need to accept your fault in this too-"

"Rick-"

"You are so damn beautiful", He held her hand between his, "That smile of yours, those eyes, every single inch of you is just… you've got everythan', and there ain't nothing about you that don't do something for me"

She softened, no longer peering at him with a glare.

"I don't like sharing you with anyone else, and if I had it my way then I'd lock you up in a tower with the kids. I'd send Maggie or Sasha up there to keep you company every once and awhile but otherwise I'd keep you all just to myself"

She bit back a smile, her eyes beginning to glisten, "Stop, you forgot about Andrea"

"I _didn't_ ", He replied bluntly, "But anyway, I'd think you'd do the same if you could, since you were more than happy to hit Penny-"

"Because that ass belongs to me. I'm the only one that's allowed to touch back there. In fact, I'm the only person that's allowed to touch anything below your neck", She insisted firmly, "Unless you need surgery, and I'll be there for that too"

Laughter erupted from Rick, "Yes ma'am"

"Good", She exhaled, looking around the room with a little frown before focusing back on him, "And I'm still mad that Mrs Hanson looks like me, because she does-"

"You know I only realised that tonight? When you were side by side?", He protested, raising his hands in surrender, "When Daryl mentioned it before, it sounded like nonsense to me, but then I actually saw you two together and… Mrs Hanson is a lovely lady but you are my angry little wife-"

"You are _not_ funny", She ejected flatly, swatting his hand away from her.

"And you _are_ sinless."

She snorted, a small smile appearing on her face, "Oh stop, come on let's go to bed, I'm tired now"

"But I'm not", He pulled her against him by her waist, "You were gonna' do somethan' that you ain't done since your college days when we were in bed the other night-"

"It was not that long ago!", She giggled, cupping his face, "I've given you special attention since"

"How about I give you some special attention?", He grabbed hold of her ass, wiggling his eyebrows at her.

Her face fell, "What is with your obsession with my ass?!"

"Turn around and I'll show you", He squeezed her cheeks as he grinned.

"Okay, you know what? Let me get some rest tonight because I am pregnant and I am tired so please, let me sleep, then tomorrow you can do whatever you want"

He narrowed his eyes at her, "Whatever I want?"

" _Whatever_ you want, _wherever_ you want. Hell, we can even stop at the grocery store and get all your favourite things", She fluttered her eyelashes at him, her thumbs stroking his cheeks gently.

Rick licked his lips as he pushed away from the bathroom counter, then scooped his wife off the ground, holding her in his arms, "Let's get some rest then"

She cackled at him as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, "You are shameless"

"We need to pick up some fruit first"

"Whatever you want, Grimes"

...

"So you crush it? Do they give you the thing to do it with?"

Rick watched his son relieve a brief lesson on eating lobster from across the table, wincing in pain occasionally as Judith held up an ice cube in a napkin to his cheek bone. He glanced at her, "How's it looking?"

Judith moved the self-made ice pack and looked at the wound, "It's still purple"

He slowly nodded, "Alright, thank you sweetie"

Judith put the ice pack back, "You have to be careful, daddy"

"I know, but daddy was being really silly before he fell down the stairs last night", He lied, not willing to disclose the real reason he was sporting a bruised cheek and busted lip, "That's why you don't play by the stairs"

"Your hair's messy", Judith pointed out, completely ignoring his little message, "You need to brush it"

"When did you become my little hair dresser? Ain't it meant to be the other way around?"

Judith frowned, "You don't do my hair like mama does"

He feigned offence, "Well I'd like to think that I do my best"

"And I appreciate that, daddy", Judith used her free hand to pat his forearm, earning her hearty chuckle from her father.

"This is nice", Michonne sighed happily, brushing Carl's hair from his eyes, "I'm glad we did this"

"It's nice", Carl agreed, shaking his head so his hair fell back in place, "We need to go out to eat more often"

"It's not cheap feeding you, you know that right?", Rick informed dryly.

"Or you", Michonne gave her husband a pointed look, "It's not easy feeding or clothing all three of you"

"Well I know that", He scoffed, "You leave the bills out for me to find at the end of the month"

She rolled her eyes at him, "Only some of them"

Rick's eyes narrowed at her, "Only some? What does that mean?"

"Can we bring Remi out next time?", Judith requested, moving the napkin to peak at her father's cheek.

Michonne stiffened, while Rick gently shook his head, "I think Remi prefers his little rat food"

"Carl gave him some pasta last night and he ate it"

Michonne looked at the teenager with bulging eyes, "You gave the rat some of the pasta?!"

Carl recoiled in his seat, "I dropped it on the floor… I didn't want to waste it"

Rick began snicker, "Your mother doesn't want him to get a taste for her cooking in case he breaks out the cage and goes looking for her in the kitchen"

His son bit his lips together as he tried not to laugh, while his wife squinted at him, "You really do want to sleep in that garage, don't you?"

Judith gasped happily, "So Remi can sleep in the house?!"

Rick sighed as he peered at his daughter, "Who would you rather have in the house, me or Remi?"

Judith's big Blue eyes sailed away from him as she weighed up her options, "...Remi's small and need someone to take care of him"

"You don't wanna' take care of daddy?"

She looked back at him with her brows knitting together, " _Mama_ already does"

Rick didn't dare look at his wife, while Carl chortled at the exchange, "That backfired terribly"

"It did", Michonne giggled evilly, nudging the teen in agreement.

"You can take turns...You always say it's good to take turns", Judith reminded him sweetly, moving the napkin again to look at the bruise she was nursing, "It's still purple?"

"It'll go again way in a couple of days so don't you worry about it, alright?", Rick took the napkin from her, "Thank you, sweetie. I feel better already"

"Good", Judith beamed, no longer kneeling on her seat.

"You know…", Carl began innocently, "Since we're all here, I think it's a good time to talk about getting me a car"

Michonne and Rick groaned in unison, before Rick held his hand up to the waiter, "Can we get the bill, please?"

"I'm not asking for an expensive car!"

"Who wants ice-cream?", Rick asked, pretending he couldn't hear his son.

"Me!", Judith cheered, raising her hand in the air, "And mama, she likes ice cream too"

"So does your brother but he's lost his mind again so we-"

"Have to help him find it", Judith finished happily.

Michonne cackled as she rubbed the teens back tenderly, "We will talk about it when you get your licence, alright?"

"Fine", The boy huffed, "But can I just say the Mickey's parents promised to buy him a car-"

"Mickey's an only child", Rick pointed out, "Between your mother's expensive shoe habit, you're eating habits, and your sisters 'anythan' that she sees on TV' habit, I'm surprised we can even afford to have one car, let alone two-"

"I do not have an expensive shoe habit!", Michonne frowned at him, "When was the last time I even bought of pair of shoes?"

"When we went to the store after school…", Judith began, but stopped herself when she caught her mother's attention, "...Uh… can we get ice cream now?"

Rick's mouth fell agape, "You see that? My poor, sweet little angel was about to tell me the truth-"

"Hurry up and pay the bill so we can go get ice cream", Michonne insisted hurriedly, trying to distract him.

Carl sniggered as he stood up from his seat, "Now that was funny"

"Carry me Carl", Judith bolted out of her seat and ran around the table to her brother, able to jump on his back with little help.

"Don't drop her", Rick warned, reaching into his pocket to get his wallet.

"I could probably carry you now dad", His son pointed out with a smirk, Judith's head resting against his.

"Don't _challenge_ him", Michonne tutted, "Then he'll want to carry all three of us to prove to you that he's stronger"

Rick shook his head as looked adoringly at the members of his family while they chuckled together, feeling his chest swell with pride as he muttered playfully, "Yeah, yeah".

 **END.**


End file.
